Joseph Wolf

Sunday, March 30, Choral Room, 10:30am - 11:00am

Fantasie No. 1 for Violin and Piano by Florence Price (trans. Wolf)

Gemini* by Gabriel L. Newvine (b. 2000) Gabriel Gekoskie (b. 2001)

I: Taurus

II: Scorpio | Virgo

III: Soleil

IV: Ascendent

*World Premiere

Joseph Wolf, Saxophones and Dor Amran, Piano

Gemini is a piece for Saxophone and Piano. This piece, commissioned by our good friend and colleague, Joseph Wolf, is an astrological exploration of how we work collaboratively as composers. When Joe approached us with the proposition of composing a work together, we were a little hesitant, as most composers never work in such a collaborative way. After realizing that this would be an interesting challenge, we decided to focus on astrology, and more specifically, Gemini, as we both have this in our star charts, and, in a way, we resemble the two faces of Gemini(especially considering we have the same name.) Each movement of the work is inspired by specific parts of our star charts.

I: Taurus explores the sun sign of Gabriel L. Newvine. Gabe, born on April 20th, sits on the cusp between Aries and Taurus. This closeness to both signs lends a chaotic dichotomy to the work. The movement revels in the strict and structured energy of a Taurus while fighting to keep it together due to the chaotic nature of Aries. Eventually, neither wins, and both simply burn out.

II: Scorpio | Virgo explores the moon signs of both composers. According to Co-Star, "The moon rules your emotions, moods, and feelings. This is likely the sign you most think of yourself as..."

This movement dances between the two signs, with frequent collisions and turns when one signs takes over. This movement was written in the style of Exquisite Corpse, where each person is given a small chunk to write, and then the other must add on to it without taking inspiration from it, much like a sewn together doll.

III. Soleil references Gabriel Gekoskie’s sun sign: Gemini. Carrying the weight of presumption, the Gemini sun sign’s multifaceted nature is often reduced to inauthentic ‘two-facedness.’ This movement aptly follows a loose binary form with internal, sonic references to the other three movements. “Soleil”is an unexpected moment of reprieve before the final movement.

IV: Ascendent is the final movement of this work and explores the rising signs of both composers. Your ascendent sign is generally considered to be the mask you put on to impress others and make it through the world. This movement echoes this social dance by maintaining a light tone, which never offends and simply floats along. It continues this charade until the very end of the work, where it simply can't act anymore and explodes off of the page. This movement was the most collaborative of the work, as every single decision made was discussed by both composers.

Thank you again to the wonderful Joseph Wolf for commissioning this work and making it come to life!

THE FANTASIE NO. 1 IN G MINOR FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO is the first of Price's two works in that genre. The autograph is dated July 15-16, 1933. This date places it in the chronological vicinity of some of Price's works that are best known today: the First (E-minor) Fantasie negre (1929-32)' and Piano Sonata in E Minor (1932), the First Symphony (1932), the Piano Concerto in D Minor (1932-34). Like all those already well-known compositions, the Violin Fantasy No. 1 reflects Price's remarkable fluency in synthesizing the traditions and idioms of post-Romantic concert music with the melodic and harmonic idioms of African American folksong.

Joseph Wolf is a saxophonist and educator from Lancaster, PA. Joe is pursuing a master's degree in saxophone performance at Penn State University, where he is the saxophone studio teaching assistant. His primary teachers have included Ken Husler, Ryan Kauffman, Jonathan Ragonese, and David Stambler. As a saxophonist, Joe performs with the Penn State University Symphonic Wind Ensemble and has previously performed with the West Chester University Wind Ensemble, Chamber Winds, Wind Symphony, and the Millersville University Concert Band. In 2022, Joe joined the WCU Wind Ensemble on their tour of southern Germany. He has performed at Carowinds in North Carolina, Dorney Park in Pennsylvania, and Hershey’s Chocolate World as a commercial musician. He is the on-call saxophonist for the Pennsylvania Chamber Winds. Joe has attended several music camps, most notably the American Saxophone Academy and the Eastman Summer Saxophone Institute.

As an active member of the saxophone community, Joseph regularly takes part in regional, national, and international conferences such as the North American Saxophone Alliance Conferences and the Navy Band Saxophone Symposium. He was the concerto competition winner for both the orchestra and wind symphony at West Chester University in 2022 and 2023. As a teacher, Joe maintains a private studio of beginner to high school student saxophonists and pianists. He is also the saxophone teacher at the Grier School, a top 100 high school for the arts in the United States. He was a technique instructor for the marching band at Hempfield High School, teaching both brass and woodwinds in both small-group and large-group scenarios. Joe is passionate about arranging/transcribing works for the saxophones including works by Mahler, Ginastera, Schubert, and Price. He is an active supporter of new music and has premiered and/or commissioned numerous new works for saxophones.