Written in 1887 by notable leider composer Hugo Wolf (1860-1903), Italian Serenade was originally written for string quartet and named simply Serenade in G Major. In his ongoing attempt to set the works of poet Joseph Eichendorff to music, Wolf based this piece off of Eichendorff’s novella Der Soldat I. By 1890, Wolf began referring to the work as Italian Serenade, perhaps in reference to a small orchestra that played an Italian serenade in Der Soldat I. The quartet version of Italian Serenade was first performed in May of 1890 in Mannheim. This arrangement for chamber orchestra with an important solo for viola (originally intended for English Horn) has often been attributed to Max Reger, but it is believed that is was actually orchestrated by Wolf himself. It premiered in Vienna in January of 1904, shortly after the composer’s death. Instrumentation: 2.2.2.2: 2.0.0.0: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set): Solo Viola in set. An edition orchestrated for string orchestra by notable bassist Lucas Drew is also available from the publisher.
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