Hugo Wolf

by Ernest Newman, Prof. Roelof Oostwoud (Foreword), Walter Legge (Introduction)

Hailed as "very interesting and very stimulating" by The New York Times, this critical biography explores the life and music of a supreme master of German song. Austrian composer Hugo Wolf (1860–1903) wrote hundreds of lieder despite the often-overwhelming effects of depression. This two-part volume contains both a biographical narrative and a sensitive survey of the composer's unique contributions to songwriting.
Beginning with Wolf's early struggles with academic failures and poverty, the book traces his brief and controversial career as a Viennese music critic, outlining the alternate periods of productivity and paralysis that led to his final mental collapse and untimely death. Author Ernest Newman writes with exuberance and keen perception of Wolf's flowering as a composer and the birth of his song cycles — the Keller songs, the Spanish, Mörike, Goethe, and Eichendorff volumes — in addition to critiquing a variety of other choral and instrumental works. Music lovers of all ages will appreciate this guide to an extraordinary composer's life and works.

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 9, 2010

About the author

Noted music critic and musicologist, Newman made his name writing for The Sunday Times, and is still regarded as one of the 20th century's most eminent critics.

Reviews

[Joelsie · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a composer who lived in a fabulous time in a fabulous city, this book is amazingly dull. Reads like a grocery list of facts, statistics, dates, etc. At the end the author gives a somewhat blistering criticism of the songs of Schubert to build his argument about the songs of Wolf - the irony is Wolf adored Schubert's songs.

If you're a Wolf fan, there's not much out there to read - and there is some interesting stuff in this book - but you have to delve through a lot of annoyingness to get thee.