NMH Magazine : Winter 2004

Akanit Wichiencharoen '05

“NMH has changed my mindset toward achieving things. When I want to accomplish something, I know I have to work hard for it.”

Last August, in a performing hall in the InterContinental Hotel in Bangkok, Ed Wichiencharoen made his debut as a solo pianist. Two hundred and fifty people listened as he rendered from memory the music of J. S. Bach, Beethoven, and Chopin.

	Akanit Wichiencharoen '05, Greg Leeds, Marianne Lockwood, Rick Lusson

He felt surprisingly calm, given the nerves that had plagued him all week, and the music came automatically, even flowingly. When the concert ended, Ed was satisfied—not because he believed he was a great pianist, but because he’d managed to turn a wish into reality in less than three months.

Ed’s concert raised $5,000 for a charity his late grandmother founded that promotes the status of women in Thai society. He came up with the idea of a charity concert in May, as he was finishing his sophomore year at NMH. Over the summer, working with his mother, he’d planned the details of the concert and endlessly rehearsed the music he’d chosen. Today he recalls of the performance, “Arriving at this point, I worked hard and kept my determination high. In fact, I overcame several breaking moments in which I thought I couldn’t do it.”

He’s had other breaking moments. Coming to NMH from Thailand in 2001, Ed cried with homesickness during his first days as a freshman, but his high determination saw him through. He began taking music lessons and joined the Jazz Ensemble, Concert Band, and Chamber Music Group. A hobbyist tennis player in Thailand, he became a competitive varsity player at NMH; in 2003, he was invited to compete at the New England Prep School Invitational Tennis Tournament, a showcase event for prep school athletes. 

He’s earned honors or high honors each term, and last spring received the Elizabeth Leyden ’22 Music Award. This past fall he won the NMH Concerto Competition and as a result will play with the Symphony Orchestra in a winter concert. This year Ed was selected as accompanist for the Select Women’s Ensemble, a challenge requiring more high determination. “It’s really hard to be the only pianist for twenty singers. When they give concerts, I’m nervous that I’ll mess them up; it’s very different from me playing by myself.” 

Remarkably, despite his musical gifts, Ed doesn’t plan to pursue piano as a career. He’s still mulling his future but is more interested in the business side of life. One can only imagine him succeeding at whatever he sets out to do, piano or portfolios, computers or conglomerates, as he plays out the grace notes of possibility. 

My NMH Hero

Last fall I took AP Calculus with Greg Leeds and AP US History with Rick Lussen. It was a challenging term, especially with the stress of taking two APs at once. Greg was an ideal teacher, organized and clear in his expectations. However, what impressed me most was his effort and commitment. Calculus didn’t end when the class was over; I always stayed after class to clear up topics I didn’t fully understand. Sometimes I spent study hours at his house, where he explained the topics until I understood them. When he told me he recognized the effort I was putting into the class, he inspired me to work harder and harder.

Rick created an environment that made the class feel so close together. At first I was shocked by the heavy workload of essays and reading assignments, especially because I wasn’t as fluent in English as the American students. Rick was more than understanding and regularly set up conferences outside of class time, helping me work on essays and clearing up questions. He let us rewrite our essays as many times as we needed until we were satisfied with them. I learned a lot about writing from him.

Marianne Lockwood is the director of piano studies. She’s been 
supportive of me since the fall of 2001, when we first met after a student recital. Although I don’t directly study piano with her, we work together sometimes on our own. One night I was really frustrated by a rehearsal before my first concert with the Select Women’s Ensemble. Although Marianne isn’t involved with SWE, she pulled me aside for almost an hour so we could practice the music together. She told me reassuring stories about her experiences as an accompanist, arranged my music into a folder, and told me, “I know you can do it.” Some of the faculty here make you smile, and she’s one of them.