Hermann Wunsch (9 August 1884 – 21 December 1954) was a German composer, conductor,
music theorist
Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the "rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (ke ...
and
lecturer
Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...
in composition.
Life and career
Born in
Neuss
Neuss (; spelled ''Neuß'' until 1968; li, Nüss ; la, Novaesium) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf. Neuss is the largest city within the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district. It ...
, Wunsch was born in Neuss, Rhineland, in 1884, the son of the railway works master Balthasar Wunsch and his wife Amalie Hafels.''Wunsch, Hermann'' In Erich H. Müller (ed.): ''Deutsches Musiker-Lexikon'' Limpert, 1929, retrieved via Deutsches Biographisches Archiv, . He began his education with a teachers' seminar. He then attended conservatories in
Krefeld
Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, i ...
, where he studied composition with Theodor Müller-Reuter,
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
, where he was taught by Frank Limbert, and Cologne.''Wunsch, Hermann'' In Friedrich Jansa (ed.): ''Deutsche Tonkünstler in Wort und Bild.'' 2nd edition, Leipzig 1911, retrieved via Deutsches Biographisches Archiv, .
Wunsch then settled in Krefeld. There he first worked for a year as an associate teacher at the conservatory. From 1907 to 1910 he conducted the local philharmonic choir and also worked as a private music teacher. He then took over the direction of the newly founded conservatoire in
Viersen
Viersen (; li, Veeëse) is the capital of the district of Viersen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Geography
Viersen is situated approximately 8 km north-west of Mönchengladbach, 15 km south-west of Krefeld and 20 km east o ...
. From 1911 to 1912 Wunsch studied at the
Berlin University of the Arts
The Universität der Künste Berlin (UdK; also known in English as the Berlin University of the Arts), situated in Berlin, Germany, is the largest art school in Europe. It is a public art and design school, and one of the four research universiti ...
Wattwil
Wattwil is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of Toggenburg in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. On 1 January 2013 the municipality of Krinau merged into Wattwil.Eastern Front. After the end of the war he lived in Berlin. From 1919 to 1920 he taught at the
Klindworth-Scharwenka Conservatory The Klindworth-Scharwenka Conservatory (german: Klindworth-Scharwenka-Konservatorium) was a music institute in Berlin, established in 1893, which for decades (until 1960) was one of the most internationally renowned schools of music. It was formed f ...
. Afterwards he worked as a freelance composer. He was financially supported by
Heinrich Schenker
Heinrich Schenker (19 June 1868 – 14 January 1935) was a Galician-born Austrian music theorist whose writings have had a profound influence on subsequent musical analysis. His approach, now termed Schenkerian analysis, was most fully exp ...
, who granted him a scholarship for destitute musicians from the Sofie-Deutsch-Fond in 1924. From 1930 to 1931 Wunsch served as choral director of the
Stern Conservatory The Stern Conservatory (''Stern'sches Konservatorium'') was a private music school in Berlin with many distinguished tutors and alumni. The school is now part of Berlin University of the Arts.
History
It was founded in 1850 as the ''Berliner Musi ...
. In 1937 he began teaching composition at the Berlin Musikhochschule, from 1945 as professor.''Wunsch, Hermann'' In Walther Killy (ed.): ''Deutsche Biografische Enzyklopädie'' vol. 10,
K. G. Saur Verlag
K. G. Saur Verlag is a German publisher that specializes in reference information for libraries. The publishing house, founded by Karl Saur, is owned by Walter de Gruyter and is based in Munich.
In 1987, K. G. Saur was acquired by Reed Interna ...
, Munich 1999, retrieved via Deutsches Biographisches Archiv, .
Wunsch was married to Paula Augusta, ''née'' Peschken. The marriage produced a son, Hans Wolfgang Wunsch (* 1913).
Wunsch died in 1954 in Berlin at the age of 70. His grave is located at the
Waldfriedhof Dahlem
The Waldfriedhof Dahlem ( Dahlem forest cemetery) is a cemetery in Berlin, in the district of Steglitz-Zehlendorf on the edge of the Grunewald forest at Hüttenweg 47. Densely planted with conifers and designed between 1931 and 1933 after the ...
.
Work
Among other works, Wunsch composed eight operas, a
piano concerto
A piano concerto is a type of concerto, a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for a piano player, which is typically accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuoso showpiec ...
, six
symphonies
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...
, a
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
and several orchestral works. In total, he created around 60 works of almost all musical genres. While his compositional output received relatively little recognition, he was highly regarded as a pedagogue and theorist.
; Works
* ''Violinkonzert.'' einsätzig,
premiere
A première, also spelled premiere, is the debut (first public presentation) of a play, film, dance, or musical composition.
A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the world), its first ...
1922 in Berlin.
* ''II. Sinfonie.'' Muich 1923.
* ''Liederbüchlein für Paula Wunsch: sechs kleine schlichte Weisen für eine Singstimme mit Klavierbegleitung. Op. 2.'' Drei Tannen-Verlag, Berlin 1924.
* ''III. Sinfonie.'' Trier 1925.
* ''IV. Sinfonie.'' Kassel 1927.
* ''Bianca.'' einaktiges Kammerspiel für Musik,
Deutsches Nationaltheater und Staatskapelle Weimar
The (DNT) is a German theatre and musical organisation based in Weimar. It is a twin institution, consisting of the theatrical (German National Theatre, now solely based in Weimar) and the symphony orchestra known as the . It has a total of s ...
1927.
* ''Don Juans Sohn.'' Kammeroper, Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar 1928.
* ''Aus dem Stundenbuch des Rainer Maria Rilke.'' (op. 18, 4 Lieder), Forberg, Leipzig 1924. Trier 1925.
* ''Kammerkonzert für Klavier und kleines Orchester: op. 22.'' Schott, Mainz 1925. Kiel 1925, Tonkünstlerfest.
* ''Chor der thebanischen Alten: op. 32.'' Gebr. Hug & Co, Leipzig 1930.
* with (poem): ''Volk : für dreistimmigen Kinder- bezw. Frauenchor oder vierstimmigen gemischten Chor mit Begl. eines Klaviers oder eines Schülerorchesters ; op. 34.'' Vieweg, Berlin-Lichterfelde 1930.
* ''Messe für Männerchor. Soli, Sopran, Alt, Tenor, Bass und Orchester Orgel ad libitum : op. 36.'' Gebr. Hug & Co, Leipzig 1930.
* ''Kleine Lustspiel-Suite : op. 37.'' Eulenburg, Leipzig 1930.
* ''Irreland.'' Opera. Grosses Haus am Domhof Osnabrück 1930.
* ''Fest auf Monbijou : Suite in fünf Sätzen für kleines Orchester ; op. 50.'' Eulenburg, Leipzig 1933. Bonn 1933.
* ''Franzosenzeit.'' Opera. Premiere
Mecklenburg State Theatre
The Mecklenburg State Theatre (german: Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater Schwerin) is the principal theatre of Schwerin in Germany. Its main theatre (or ''Großes Haus'') seats 650 people and is used for the performance of plays, opera, musical th ...
1933.
* ''Die kleine Passion : Maria, unser Frauen, der träumet ; Wk 56.'' W. Müller, Heidelberg 1957.
Awards
Wunsch was awarded several music prizes. In 1925, he received the Schott Prize and the Prize of the City of
Trier
Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...
. His symphony ''Hammerwerk'' earned him the Franz Schubert Prize offered by the Leipzig publishing house Hug & Co. In 1928 he was awarded the Franz Schubert Prize for his ''V. Sinfonie'' at the
1928 International Columbia Graphophone Competition
The 1928 International Columbia Graphophone Competition was a competition part-sponsored by the Columbia record company in honour of the centenary of the death of Franz Schubert. Its original aim was to encourage composers to produce completions ...
.''Wunsch, Hermann'' In Hugo Riemann: ''Musiklexikon.'' 11th edition, Hesse, Berlin 1929, retrieved via Deutsches Biographisches Archiv., .