Pianist finds employment, transcendence

Pianist Aaron Wunsch, DC '99, was a mischievous child. "I often misbehaved in my lessons and my father said I should stop playing," he said. Fortunately, Wunsch ignored his father's advice, and has become one of the best undergraduate pianists at Yale.

Wunsch began studying the piano with a nun who was also a composer. He became serious about music at the tender age of 10 and began lessons at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, where he was surrounded by other driven, energetic youths with similar musical interests. He continued to study seriously during his formative years and throughout high school. Several years ago, Wunsch made the pivotal decision to enroll at Yale instead of at a conservatory. He "wanted the combination of a conservatory and a liberal arts school." Today he studies with renowned pianist Peter Frankl, a professor at the Yale School of Music. (Frankl resides in London, but comes to Yale regularly to teach.) Last October, Wunsch performed Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with the Yale Symphony Orchestra after winning the 1996 William Waite Concerto Competition by playing a portion of the work for the jury.

A music and international studies major, Wunsch finds that study in other fields enhances his musicianship. Although he admits there is not necessarily a correlation between the other humanities and music, he understands that "to be just a performer, something is missing. If...I don't have some experience to reflect upon, I feel somewhat guilty walking on stage. If one performs Liszt's Transcendental Etudes, it helps to understand ideas of transcendentalism. It might be better to spend time understanding this than simply spending time to learn all the notes perfectly."

Wunsch greatly admires Liszt, and is currently reading Alan Walker's mammoth biography of the composer. "He was an innovator and an invincible performer," Wunsch said. "He was benevolent, giving free lessons, and was extremely well-rounded which we can see from his relationship with Berlioz. He is a model for the intellectual pianist."

Despite devoting much time to his solo piano repertoire, Wunsch finds time for other activities. He plays chamber music with friends and is currently working on Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio with two other undergraduates. "Chamber music is important, especially for pianists," Wunsch said. "It is also a chance to be social with other musicians, and the music itself is a social conversation. The violin will say one thing and then be quiet as the piano answers." Wunsch feels that more pianists can take advantage of these musical opportunities by performing four-hand piano music.

Wunsch plans to attend a music festival next summer and to continue his music studies after graduation. He is very enthusiastic about pursuing a life in the musical world, a world in which he sees many opportunities. "Although everyone complains about a horrible market for musicians, it seems as if they are all able to find a job," Wunsch said.

Back to A&E...