Peter Wolf (composer)
Peter Wolf (born August 26, 1952 in Vienna ) is an Austrian-American composer and music producer who has been nominated several times for a Grammy . With more than 230 million records sold and numerous awards, Peter Wolf is by far Austria's most successful musician in international jazz, rock and pop music. In 2002 he was awarded the Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and Art .
life and career
Youth / Austria
Peter Wolf gave his first Beethoven concert at the age of nine and studied classical piano at the Vienna Conservatory. At the age of 16 he won first prize as a solo pianist at the European Jazz Festival and became a member of Fatty George's Band. In 1999 and 2004 he wrote two symphonies.
He wrote songs and arrangements for André Heller and Erika Pluhar .
Emigration to America
In 1975 Wolf emigrated to the USA. In Atlanta / Georgia he played in a jazz band with which he toured for a long time. In Birmingham / Alabama he left the band, played solo in a club called Courtyard and was hired as a teacher at the University of Montevallo , where he taught the student big band for a year. There he met the musician Frank Zappa , whose keyboardist he was from 1976 to 1980. Between 1980 and 1985, Wolf went freelance as a studio musician. As a producer and writer, he arranged hits for Starship “ We Built This City ” or Go West “ King of Wishful Thinking ” (from the movie “ Pretty Woman ”) and many more.
family
Peter Wolf and Ina Wolf were a couple from 1979 to 1995. The marriage was annulled retrospectively. Ina Wolf took part as Christina Simon with the song Today in Jerusalem at the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 , where it only achieved a shared last place. With her he formed the duo Wolf & Wolf, which released two albums between 1982 and 1984.
Peter Wolf now lives with his wife Lea Wolf-Millesi, a model and poet, and their children in Malibu.
Work with Frank Zappa
Between 1976 and 1980 Wolf was a keyboardist in Frank Zappa's band . With him he recorded several albums.
Albums with Frank Zappa:
- Sheik Yerbouti (1979)
- Joe's Garage 1 (1979)
- Joe's Garage 2 & 3 (1979)
- Tinsel Town Rebellion (1981)
- Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar (1981)
Work as a composer
In the 1990s, Wolf discovered film music for himself: “ The Neverending Story III ”, the “ Peanuts ” or “ Irren is Male ” bear witness to this. Wolf has produced eight number 1 hits over the course of his career. He wrote movie songs like Top Gun and worked as a producer, arranger and composer for Jefferson Starship , Kenny Loggins , Commodores , The Who , Santana , Chicago , Natalie Cole . Wolf wrote the music for the television series Inspector Rex and the complete scores for the Peanuts , Mad is Male and Dance on the Volcano .
Whamslam
Wolf developed the project with his wife Lea as well as graphic artists and music specialists from the Bay Area near San Francisco. The chewing gum family “Chew” guides you through the colorful digital world of Whamslam. Children should solve tasks there, learn through play and be confronted with values. The transmission of knowledge and ethical values as well as the promotion of imagination and creative thinking should be carried out without being strict.
Award
In 2000, the Austrians voted him in a survey by the magazine “Wiener” as the “most successful Austrian musician of the century” - after Mozart . He celebrated his greatest successes as a sought-after studio keyboardist and arranger. He was nominated for a Grammy for a duet by Thelma Houston and Dennis Edwards . In total, Peter Wolf received seven Grammy nominations for his work.
Wolf won the German Record Prize twice for his work with Andre Heller . In 2002 the Republic of Austria awarded him the Cross of Honor for Science and Art .
Discography (selection)
| Albums | |
solo
|
Gipsy Love
|
| Cooperation | |
|
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Filmography (selection)
Feature films
|
TV Shows
|
literature
- Alexander Rausch : Wolf, Peter. In: Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon . Online edition, Vienna 2002 ff., ISBN 3-7001-3077-5 ; Print edition: Volume 5, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 2006, ISBN 3-7001-3067-8 .
Web links
- Works by and about Peter Wolf in the catalog of the German National Library
- Peter Wolf in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Péter Wolf in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Interview at spiegel.de , June 8, 2004
- wolfmillesi.com - personal website
- Discography on discogs.com
Individual evidence
- ↑ Peter Wolf. Thomas Sessler Verlag GmbH, accessed on September 30, 2016 .
- ↑ a b Whamslam: Austrian Launches "YouTube for Kids" In: The Standard . September 9, 2015.
- ↑ Peter, the wolf. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on March 4, 2016 ; Retrieved January 19, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b Visit to Peter Wolf: “I am the orchestra!” Retrieved on January 19, 2016 .
- ↑ Visualized Linz Klangwolke 2004. Accessed on January 19, 2016 .
- ↑ a b From Zappa to Inspector Rex: Peter Wolf is turning 60. Accessed on January 19, 2016 .
- ↑ Summer Special 2013 - Have a good trip! - Part 6: From Vienna to Jerusalem at blog.prinz.de, accessed on April 1, 2015.
- ↑ Wolf & Wolf Discography at discogs.com, accessed March 27, 2015.
- ↑ Wolf-Millesi Productions - About us. Retrieved January 19, 2016 .
- ↑ Whamslam (Official site). Retrieved February 22, 2016 .
- ↑ Legendary musician starts “Youtube” for children. Retrieved February 22, 2016 .
- ↑ Hedi Grager - journalist / blogger | Lea and Peter Millesi: whamslam.com . In: Hedi Grager - freelance journalist . April 30, 2016 ( hedigrager.com [accessed June 22, 2018]).
- ^ KulturWerk series of broadcasts: Peter Wolf. Retrieved February 3, 2016 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wolf, Peter |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Austrian-American producer and composer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 26, 1952 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Vienna |