THE KRAFT SONATA for violin & piano

The Kraft Sonata, for violin & piano, written in Wappingers Falls, New York, 5/19/06-9/10/06, was composed to honor my uncle’s humanism. As a teenager, Jerry Kraft listened to his parent’s conversations about how certain relatives had begged them for financial assistance to get them out of Europe because of the posing threat of the Nazis. As threatening as this burgeoning Third Reich was, with its buildup of propaganda demonstrating its military might as well as human superiority, with Lena Weissmuller’s Hollywood level propaganda, nobody was prepared for the savage satanic fury it was about to unleash, let alone believed it was consciously possible. His family, of very modest means, declined sending money to any of the relatives who were to be subsequently exterminated. Jerry never forgot about this. Being haunted by the power of one’s actions, he inevitably became philanthropic in his modest way for the rest of his life. He was absolutely brilliant, earning degrees in chemistry and law, becoming a patent attorney for IBM. He would also prove to be a fan of my music and patron underwriting several different projects. It is with great pride I present this work honoring his most gracious soul!