August Bungert

Friedrich August Bungert (14 March 1845 – 26 October 1915) was a German opera composer and poet. Biography Early life Bungert was born in Mülheim. His unusual musical talent was noticed and nurtured at high school by his teacher, Heinrich Kufferath, the brother of the composer Ferdinand Kufferath. Bungert’s father, a wealthy merchant and an eminent member of the community, was unenthusiastic about his son’s ambitions and considered his son’s musical ability to be an “ill-fated inclination”. He would have preferred his son to undertake a career as a merchant or a doctor. Only his mother supported him, but she died when August Bungert was ten. In the aftermath of her death, the conflict between father and son became more intense. Upon finishing high school at 16, Bungert fled to Cologne. He attended the Conservatorium there and was taught by Ferdinand Kufferath, his high school teacher’s brother. In Cologne, he was discovered by the composer Max Bruch’s sister, who had been charged by the Paris Conservatorium with finding a talented musician to be educated in Paris. Musical career Bungert was destitute in Paris, just managing to make ends meet by giving piano lessons, until his fathe