ACCEPT’s Guitar Powerhouse WOLF HOFFMANN, inspiration and role model for generations of new guitar players - his classical handwriting carved a different niche for ACCEPT since the early music labeling of something called HEAVY METAL - is getting ready to release his 2nd solo album entitled »Headbangers Symphony«, completely dedicated to the grand Classic Maestros, on July 1st, 2016 by Nuclear Blast.
Wolf Hoffmann has a passion. His life-long love and dedication to heavy metal music is documented in dozens of albums spanning four decades with his long time heavy metal band ACCEPT. But beyond heavy metal, Wolf has an incessant craving for the classics, yes, the ones written decades and centuries ago.
Classical music has always been an influence - albeit limited - on ACCEPT's Teutonic approach to rock and heavy metal. However, it wasn't until 1997 during a extended hiatus from ACCEPT, that Wolf Hoffmann finally had the chance to fully explore and fulfill this interest by recording his first astounding solo album »Classical«, a record filled with his rock guitar driven interpretations of some of classical music’s most loved compositions.
"I have always incorporated classical music in my songwriting with ACCEPT, especially with »Metal Heart«, but I constantly felt there was so much more that I could do and I did not want to overload ACCEPT or force it in any way. I always knew I could make a whole record of it and that’s how the first record »Classical« was born. Even today, fans tell me that they are still listening to it, that's why it is so fantastic now to do another one."
»Headbangers Symphony« is truly a bold statement by a genuine musician who simply refused to rest on his laurels and continues to push and challenge himself.
»Headbangers Symphony« - Track Listing:
01. Scherzo (L. v. Beethoven)
02. Night On Bald Mountain (M. Mussorgsky)
03. Je Crois Entendre Encore (G. Bizet)
04. Double Cello Concerto in G Minor (A. Vivaldi)
05. Adagio (T. Albinoni)
06. Symphony No. 40 (W. A. Mozart )
07. Swan Lake (P. Tchaikovsky)
08. Madame Butterfly (G. Puccini)
09. Pathétique (L. v. Beethoven)
10. Meditation (J. Massenet)
11. Air On The G String (J. S. Bach)
"I am just so excited about »Headbangers Symphony«. It has taken a long, long time but here we are, it's done, finally!" Wolf is just bursting with vigor as he talks about his latest labor of love. But why now? "It's truly coincidental, after we completed the last ACCEPT tour, I finally had the time to finish it. I started this a few years ago. The early recordings have been sitting in my archives in my home studio for years, almost completed. The reality was that with the continued success of ACCEPT, I was only able to work on it when ACCEPT was not recording or touring."
The prevalent early challenge was to pick the most suitable compositions. This was an exploratory process that only increased Wolf's adoration for the classics. "I always listen to classical music, it's always playing throughout my house. I have a huge collection of classics and as I listen - often at random, I take notes if something truly strikes me. When I notice that this or that could work in a translation to rock or heavy metal, I remember it and I pursue it! This has been going on for a long time!"
There are several reasons for the necessary experimentations that faced Wolf. Most classical compositions were written to be performed by a full orchestra. The fluid timing, those multiple, complex layers and sections that stretched out for lengthy periods, classical music was simply never designed to be played to the rigid beat so prevalent in rock 'n' roll.
»Headbangers Symphony« showcases an overab
»Headbangers Symphony« - Track Listing:
01. Scherzo (L. v. Beethoven)
02. Night On Bald Mountain (M. Mussorgsky)
03. Je Crois Entendre Encore (G. Bizet)
04. Double Cello Concerto in G Minor (A. Vivaldi)
05. Adagio (T. Albinoni)
06. Symphony No. 40 (W. A. Mozart )
07. Swan Lake (P. Tchaikovsky)
08. Madame Butterfly (G. Puccini)
09. Pathétique (L. v. Beethoven)
10. Meditation (J. Massenet)
11. Air On The G String (J. S. Bach)
"I am just so excited about »Headbangers Symphony«. It has taken a long, long time but here we are, it's done, finally!" Wolf is just bursting with vigor as he talks about his latest labor of love. But why now? "It's truly coincidental, after we completed the last ACCEPT tour, I finally had the time to finish it. I started this a few years ago. The early recordings have been sitting in my archives in my home studio for years, almost completed. The reality was that with the continued success of ACCEPT, I was only able to work on it when ACCEPT was not recording or touring."
The prevalent early challenge was to pick the most suitable compositions. This was an exploratory process that only increased Wolf's adoration for the classics. "I always listen to classical music, it's always playing throughout my house. I have a huge collection of classics and as I listen - often at random, I take notes if something truly strikes me. When I notice that this or that could work in a translation to rock or heavy metal, I remember it and I pursue it! This has been going on for a long time!"
There are several reasons for the necessary experimentations that faced Wolf. Most classical compositions were written to be performed by a full orchestra. The fluid timing, those multiple, complex layers and sections that stretched out for lengthy periods, classical music was simply never designed to be played to the rigid beat so prevalent in rock 'n' roll.
»Headbangers Symphony« showcases an overab