Wolpe, Stefan

Wolpe, Stefan (shtĕf`än vôl`pə), 1902–72, German–American composer. Of Jewish ancestry, he went to live in Palestine in 1933, but settled in the United States in 1938. Wolpe wrote several operas and cantatas and a good deal of chamber music. His style embraces many elements, from folk music to modern jazz to a form of twelve-tone technique. His works include the opera Zeus and Elida (1927), the cantata On the Education of Man (1930), and the ballet The Man from Midian (1942).

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Wolpe, Stefan (1902–72) composer; born in Berlin, Germany. Active in German theater productions with Brecht and others in the 1920s, he studied with Busoni and Webern before fleeing the Nazis in 1934. In the U.S.A. from 1938, he taught in various schools including Black Mountain (1952–56) and Long Island University (1957–68). From a variety of influences ranging from jazz to 12-tone technique, he composed in a highly controlled and increasingly complex style.