Kuno Stierlin

Kuno Stierlin was born on 30 August 1886 in Ulm (Germany), as the son of the opera singer Adolf Stierlin. Because his parents travelled constantly due to their theatrical engagements, he was raised in Münster by his aunt. He received his school education in Münster and his first piano lessons at the age of six. His foundational musical training was continued and deepened at the Münster Conservatory (Münsterisches Konservatorium), an institution founded by his father in 1897. There, Kuno Stierlin studied piano, organ, and violin. To pursue higher academic musical education, he relocated to Würzburg to study composition under Max Reger.
His professional career began with appointments as a Kapellmeister, serving in various musical positions across German cities, most notably in Münster, Elberfeld, and Dortmund. In 1923, he assumed the position of principal conductor of the Oratorienvereinigung (Oratorio Society) in Hengelo, a post he held throughout the interwar years until his return to Münster in 1939. Following the end of World War II and the destruction of his home, he relocated as a war victim to Warendorf, where he spent a decade primarily dedicated to his creative work while concurrently serving as an organist and acting as artistic director and conductor of the Westkirchener Männergesangsverein (men’s choral society) from 1949 to 1952. He spent the final years of his retirement in Düsseldorf.
His extensive catalogue of compositions originally comprised approximately 400 works across diverse genres; however, the vast majority of his output was destroyed during a severe air raid on Münster in 1944. He continued to compose after World War II but was of course unable to recreate such a large body of work. The surviving pre-war compositions are preserved at the University of Münster.
Kuno Stierlin died on 26 August 1967 in Düsseldorf (Germany).

In my possession is the autograph manuscript of the "Sonatine in A-Dur" for piano by Kuno Stierlin. The work was composed in 1959 and is dedicated to pianist Elly Ney.