Adolf Wallnöfer by Rabending

Adolf Wallnöfer (1854-1946); Austrian baritone/tenor.
He studied music composition and singing in Vienna with Desoff, Krenn and Von Rokatinsky. Since 1875 he performed as "Liedersänger". His stage debut was probably in 1878 (as a baritone) at the Stadttheater von Olmütz as Count Luna in Verdi's "Il Trovatore". Since 1880 he sang tenor roles and he became one the most famous German Helden- and Wagner tenors of his days. From 1881/82 he was engaged at the Theater von Olmütz, 1882/85 at the Stadttheater von Bremen and 1885/95 at the Deutschen Theater Prag. In 1889 he made guest appearances in Moscow and St. Petersburg. The season 1895/96 he was engaged at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and in 1896 he made a tour to Russia. In the following years he appeared at Stettin, Breslau, Nürnberg, Vienna, Hamburg, Brno and Riga. He was a respected "Liedersänger" and he created several songs composed especially for him by Johannes Brhams. In addition to his career as a singer, he was a gifted composer. He wrote more than 400 songs and ballads, choral and other vocal music, piano works, Chamber music and an opera "Eddystone", that premiered 1899 at the Deutsches Theater in Prague. Since 1908 he lived in Munich as a composer and singingteacher.