DESCRIPTION:
Sonatine (1963)
Anton Wolf (1914-1989)
Performed by Wooden Cities, Buffalo NY
Michael McNeill, piano

Anton Wolf's Sonatine puts modern harmonic and melodic ideas into a quasi-Classical three-movement form. The first movement is indeed a miniature sonata, presenting two contrasting groups of ideas — the first alternating between a playful, skittering line and a more static melody; the second is a sparer melody with a simple rhythmic accompaniment. The sections are linked by a slow chorale; the second group closes with melodic fragments punctuated by silence. Wolf focuses on these latter ideas in the development, returning to the first theme group only at the recapitulation. The ominous chorale theme closes the movement.

The second movement presents a charming, lyrical melody, which breaks off into a stark, marcato theme. The third movement, Toccata, is a driving, rhythmic etude that occasionally yields to a fragmented melody recalling themes from the first movement before resuming its headlong sprint. The brief, closing fantasie brings us back to the opening of the first movement.
notes by Michael McNeill


This concert has been made possible by the generous endowment provided by the estate of Muriel Hebert Wolf and Albert Steger. It was their wish that the funds be used to produce concerts of music from Buffalo. This is the first concert to occur using those funds.

Muriel Hebert Wolf (1925-2009) joined the music faculty at the University at Buffalo in 1965. She taught voice and opera studies at UB until her retirement in 1993. Muriel was married to composer and flutist, Anton Wolf (1914-1989), who was a member of the music faculty at Buffalo State University.

Muriel was a graduate of New England Conservatory with an undergraduate degree in vocal performance and a master’s degree in musicology. She was also a Fulbright Fellow at the Max Reinhardt Seminar, the school of drama at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. Prior to coming to UB she served as soprano-in-residence at Brandeis University and as a member of the music faculty at Indiana University.

While at UB Muriel served as Director of Opera from 1966-1979 during which time she produced and directed more than 30 major productions, including several with the Buffalo Philharmonic. She founded MusicTheater Advocates in 1974 to promote awareness of opera in Buffalo.

Albert Steger was bassist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra 1951-1982. He also served as orchestra librarian for the symphony 1966-1982. Albert was born in Pennsylvania but moved to Detroit where he studied bass with his uncle, Arthur Luck, founder of Luck’s Music Library. Albert was a skilled music copyist partly as a result of his duties as orchestra librarian and partly through his contact with his Uncle Arthur’s music publishing business. Albert’s friendship with Anton Wolf dated from their days together as members of the Works Projects Administration’s (WPA) Detroit Civic Orchestra. After Anton died in 1989, Muriel sought assistance from Albert (by then a widower) to organize Anton’s scores and papers. Albert applied all of his copyist’s skills to create fresh working copies of much of Anton’s compositional output.
John Bewley
Associate Librarian, UB Music Library