pianist

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An American Takes Top Prize at Chopin Contest

Eric Lu outplays 180 rivals at piano's most prestigious competition

(Newser) - Eric Lu, a 27-year-old pianist from Massachusetts, clinched the top prize at the International Chopin Piano Competition in the Polish capital of Warsaw, a contest widely regarded as the piano world's Olympics. The event, held every five years, drew 181 participants this cycle—more than 100 from East Asia...

Bossa Nova Star Sergio Mendes Dies at 83
Bossa Nova Legend Dies
After Bout With Long COVID
OBITUARY
Sep 6, 2024 12:55 PM CDT

Bossa Nova Legend Dies After Bout With Long COVID

Brazil's Sergio Mendes, whose 'Mas Que Nada' made him a star, had suffered from long COVID

(Newser) - Sergio Mendes, the Grammy-winning Brazilian musician whose hit "Mas Que Nada" made him a global legend, has died after months battling the effects of long COVID. He was 83. The death Thursday of the Brazilian pianist, songwriter, and arranger was confirmed in a statement by his family, per the...

Stranger Gives Child Piano Prodigy a Stunning Gift

Bill Magnusson hopes to see Jude Kofie reach his full potential: 'He's Mozart level'

(Newser) - Eleven-year-old Jude Kofie stunned his parents when he sat down at the family's electric keyboard about a year ago and started playing fabulously, despite having no instruction. The boy living with autism in Aurora, Colorado, seemed to have a gift, as professional piano tuner Bill Magnusson recognized when he...

Last Member of the 'Classic Quartet' Is Dead at 81

McCoy Tyner's full-blooded playing gave post-bop its signature piano sound

(Newser) - McCoy Tyner is no more. The nimble and innovative jazz musician—called by one critic "the most influential pianist of his generation"—died Friday at home in Bergenfield, NJ. He was 81. Tyner will always be associated with John Coltrane's "classic quartet," which erupted in...

Famed Pianist's Wife Ruled Unfit for Murder Trial

She's accused of smothering 2 young daughters

(Newser) - Sofya Tsygankova, the estranged wife of famed Ukrainian pianist Vadym Kholodenko, has been declared unfit to stand trial for the murder of the couple's two young daughters earlier this year. NBC reports that a Texas judge has ordered the 32-year-old to spend 120 days in a mental health facility...

Dementia Hasn't Dulled Gifts of 101-Year-Old Pianist

She's a 'wonderful example of an indomitable human spirit'

(Newser) - The incredible abilities of a 101-year-old pianist with vascular dementia highlight just how much we still have to learn about our own brains. The woman rarely knows where she is and can't recognize anybody she has met in the last 20 years or more, but she can play more...

Deaths of Pianist's Kids Renew Talk of Cliburn Curse

3 of 16 Cliburn winners have died at an early age

(Newser) - Three years after winning the prestigious gold medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, pianist Vadym Kholodenko suffered the deaths of his two young children, for which his estranged wife has been charged with capital murder . It's just the latest tragedy to befall a Cliburn winner, Scott Cantrell...

Famed Pianist's Young Children Found Dead

Vadym Kholodenko placed the 911 call Thursday morning

(Newser) - Police in Benbrook, Texas, responded to a 911 call on Thursday and found a tragic scene: the two young daughters of a celebrated concert pianist dead in their beds, and his estranged wife stabbed. The specifics of what may have happened became only slightly less opaque during a Friday press...

Husband 'Arrested' in Murder of Concert Pianist

Natalia Strelchenko was found with fatal injuries at home

(Newser) - Police have arrested the husband of a world-renowned concert pianist after she died yesterday from severe injuries in Manchester, England. Police responded to emergency calls just after midnight "following reports that a woman had been assaulted" and found Natalia Strelchenko, 38, in need of medical attention at her home,...

Musician: By Law, Bad Review Must Be Pulled

Pianist Dejan Lazic asks Washington Post to remove article

(Newser) - Ah, the life of a high-flying soloist: Tour the world, wine and dine with musical greats ... and get an occasional bad review. Croatian pianist Dejan Lazic doesn't much like the last part, so he's asked the Washington Post to remove an online review under the European Union's...

Famed Pianist Storms Off Stage Over Smartphone

Fan had been recording performance

(Newser) - Famed Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman took a serious stand against rude fans and their smartphones at a recent performance in Germany. He spotted someone filming him from the audience, says a spokesperson for the Ruhr Piano Festival, and "asked them to stop, but they didn't." So he...

Famed Pianist Van Cliburn Dead at 78


 Famed Pianist 
 Van Cliburn 
 Dead at 78 
OBITUARY
Feb 27, 2013 11:45 AM CST

Famed Pianist Van Cliburn Dead at 78

Texan's 1958 performance helped thaw Cold War

(Newser) - The renowned American classical pianist Van Cliburn has died at age 78. His publicist and longtime friend Mary Lou Falcone said that Cliburn died this morning after a battle with bone cancer. She'd announced in late August that Cliburn had been diagnosed with advanced cancer and was being cared...

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