Joseph Yungen

JOSEPH YUNGEN is a musician who happens to play the piano. He has established an international reputation for his consistent excellence as soloist and collaborator in a wide variety of musical contexts and repertoire, including chamber music, art song, new music, as well as choral and orchestral music. His performances and teaching appearances have been met with acclaim across the United States, Europe, and Asia.

Known for his insatiable musical curiosity, Joseph is constantly expanding his musical knowledge, most recently by exploring unconventional tunings and unequal temperaments. When it comes to piano tuning, he is particularly fond of Young's Temperament, which he has featured in many of his performances.

In 2021, Joseph returned as faculty to the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, where he participated as a Collaborative Piano Fellow in 2012. He is currently based in Maryland as full-time faculty at Frostburg State University, where he enjoys making music with the students and faculty while maintaining an active schedule of performing and recording.

In 2013, Joseph was the featured soloist in the Hans Abrahamsen Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (Musica Nova/Brad Lubman, director), with the composer in attendance. He also performed regularly with the New Juilliard Ensemble and AXIOM. He cofounded and taught master classes for the New Jersey Young Artist Piano Competition in 2014.

Winner of the “Audience Favorite” and “Best Performance of the Music of Szymanowski” awards in the 2008 Seattle International Piano Competition, Joseph received First Prize in the 88th Annual Bruce P. Carlson Schubert Club Piano Competition in Minneapolis, the Ann Fehn Pianist’s First Prize in the 14th Annual Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition, and the Barr Award for Excellence in Accompanying.

Joseph studied with Jonathan Feldman at The Juilliard School, where he earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree. He received Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance & Literature and in Accompanying & Chamber Music from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with Jean Barr and Douglas Humpherys, and the Bachelor of Arts degree in Piano Performance at Southern Oregon University under the instruction of Alexander Tutunov.