Ingolf Wunder

Ingolf Wunder is an outstanding Austrian pianist, composer, conductor and entrepreneur.

Together with his wife, he founded the company “APPASSIO” in 2018. This was followed in 2020 by the founding of “APPASSIMO”, a start-up for music and art education used by universities in the DACH region.

His concerts take place in the most prestigious concert halls and he has recorded several CDs for the renowned label “Deutsche Grammophon”. He is also involved as an expert for the “SDG” (Sustainable Development Goals) on various platforms.

Ingolf Wunder began his musical adventure at the age of 4 with the violin. Without pressure from his parents, he saw the violin as his hobby. At the same time, he developed his sporting talent and interest in technology and computers at an early age.

Ingolf Wunder lecture topics

• High performance & peak performance – in the everyday life of musicians & in companies
• The importance of quality music in a singular, high-tech future
• Neuroscience & music – creativity & innovation
• The role of humans in an AI future: why music is key
• Music and the future of technology – The zeitgeist of inspiration & future thinking
• Creativity, inspiration, visions
• Leadership – How to turn soloists into a team

At the age of 14, Ingolf Wunder’s talent for the piano was discovered by chance by a teacher in Linz. He gave up the violin, left Klagenfurt and began intensive piano studies at the Bruckner Conservatory in Linz.

It soon became apparent that Ingolf Wunder is extremely passionate and determined. He sets himself ambitious goals, which he achieves in a focussed manner. A few months after switching to the piano, he began practising 5-8 hours a day, took part in his first youth competition and won 1st prize (VII Concorso Internazionale di Musica, Cortemilia).

This was soon followed by 1st prizes at the XVI European Music Competition (Turin), the 63rd Steinway Piano Competition (Hamburg) and several more. About a year after changing instruments, he made his debut at the Vienna Konzerthaus.

Further lecture topics:

• Amadeo’s world.

How we can use music and frequencies to mould a young person ready for the technological challenges of 2100.

• Ensemble performance: building highly functional teams inspired by making music together

Inspired by the intimate and complex dynamics of making music in small and large ensembles, this talk offers insights into building high-functioning teams in the corporate world, emphasising communication, mutual respect and shared purpose.

• The Composer’s Blueprint: Strategic Planning and Creativity in Music and Business

The process of composing and making music and the path to a successful life as a professional musician – envisioning a concept, structuring the components, and executing with precision – mirrors strategic planning in business. This keynote will discuss how the combination of creativity and analytical planning can lead to innovative, beautiful results and success in business projects.

• The Crescendo of Confidence: Building Self-Confidence on the Road to Success

Inspired by the resilience and confidence of an artist outside the system, this talk offers insights into building self-confidence and overcoming self-doubt. Discover how to utilise your unique talents and stay true to your vision to pave your way to success and happiness.

• The Frequency of Success: What Music and Interpretation Can Teach Us About Vibrant Workplaces

Explore the science of sound in music and how these principles can be applied to create more vibrant, energised and productive work environments. This presentation will focus on how music, energy and atmosphere affect us as people and how they can significantly impact employee performance and satisfaction in the workplace.

• Leading change: Insights into leadership from a maestro

This presentation will draw parallels between the role of a conductor and that of leaders in organisations. It will discuss how vision, clarity and adaptability in conducting can support dynamic and responsive leadership in organisations to foster an environment of innovation and efficiency.

More about Ingolf Wunder:

At the age of 16, Ingolf Wunder was awarded the Liszt Prize at the International Liszt Piano Competition (Budapest). At the age of 18, he was invited by the renowned conductor Emmanuel Krivine to play at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris. At this time, Wunder decided to continue his education at the University of Music in Vienna. However, due to a lack of suitable teachers, he always looked for masters outside the institutions and relied on his ability to work hard and follow a vision. This is how he came to work with and become friends with Idil Biret.

After a short but difficult period of doubt, which made him think of perhaps giving up his pianistic career and studying computer science instead, life wanted it differently and a collaboration with Adam Harasiewicz began. The International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland, then brought him his breakthrough. Ingolf Wunder was awarded 2nd prize, which caused a great scandal in the music scene and among the audience, as most people thought Wunder was the real winner.

After his success at the Chopin Competition, he toured and gave concerts, studied conducting and began composing his own music. Wunder has recorded several albums and performed in Europe, Asia and America, including in venues such as the Vienna Musikverein, Carnegie Hall in New York, the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Liederhalle in Stuttgart, the Laiszhalle in Hamburg, the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Wigmore Hall and Cadogan Hall in London, the Sala Verdi in Milan, the Teatro Manzoni in Bologna, the Tonhalle Zurich, the Auditorium Lyon, the Warsaw Philharmonic, the Rudolfinum in Prague, the Moscow Conservatory, the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, the Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Teatro Municipal in Santiago di Chile, the National Concert Hall in Taipei and many more.

Ingolf Wunder made his conducting debut in Milan in 2023. Among the works to be performed was one of Ingolf Wunder’s own compositions.

In his career, Ingolf Wunder has now visited 50 countries and realised that there are major problems in music education worldwide. 1) The music education system produces standardised “professionals” who have lost the sense of genuine musicality, or it excludes “non-musicians” from music education altogether, with far-reaching consequences for society. 2) Music, both composed and performed, has lost the depth and quality it once had.

To change this, he decided to become an entrepreneur, founded APPASSIO with his wife and began to work with the utmost passion and dedication to improve the quality of music education worldwide. In 2020, he co-founded the APPASSIMO platform, which is used by some of the largest music academies in Germany (UdK Berlin, HfM Berlin, Hmtmh, etc.) and Austria (Graz, Linz, Klagenfurt, Vienna).

Ingolf Wunder also appears as a speaker and represents the music world – he has been a public speaker in Davos during several WEFs, in San Diego during the world’s largest education conference ASU GSV, at the IGF of the United Nations and at other events. He is also committed to the United Nations’ SDG4 (Quality Education).

Passion is a key word in Ingolf Wunder’s life. He only plays repertoire that he is passionate about, passionately admires Romanticism and Impressionism in the visual arts and passionately discovers new foods and flavours. He believes that a person can only remain true to himself if he does everything with complete conviction and passion, and if he sticks to his personal convictions. Out of this passion, he works hard and lives and leads the vision for a better music education system.

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