Abbey Henry Simon (January 8, 1920 – December 18, 2019) was an American concert pianist, teacher, and recording artist. He was a protégé of
Josef Hofmann
Josef Casimir Hofmann (originally Józef Kazimierz Hofmann; January 20, 1876February 16, 1957) was a Polish-American pianist, composer, music teacher, and inventor.
Biography
Josef Hofmann was born in Podgórze (a district of Kraków), in A ...
at the
Curtis Institute of Music and a winner of the
Naumburg International Piano Competition
The Naumburg International Piano Competition is the name given to all the piano competitions sponsored by the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation. It is a competition for young pianists, of ages 17 to 32, organized in New York City, United States since ...
in 1940. He was called a "supervirtuoso" by ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
''.
Education
Simon began lessons with
David Saperton at the age of five. At the age of eight, Simon was accepted by
Josef Hofmann
Josef Casimir Hofmann (originally Józef Kazimierz Hofmann; January 20, 1876February 16, 1957) was a Polish-American pianist, composer, music teacher, and inventor.
Biography
Josef Hofmann was born in Podgórze (a district of Kraków), in A ...
as a scholarship student at the
Curtis Institute of Music in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
, where his classmates included
Jorge Bolet and
Sidney Foster. Simon also took lessons from
Leopold Godowsky
Leopold Mordkhelovich Godowsky Sr. (13 February 1870 – 21 November 1938) was a Lithuanian-born American virtuoso pianist, composer and teacher. He was one of the most highly regarded performers of his time, known for his theories concernin ...
,
Dora Zaslavsky, and
Harold Bauer
Harold Victor Bauer (28 April 1873 – 12 March 1951) was a noted pianist of Jewish heritage who began his musical career as a violinist.
Biography
Harold Bauer was born in Kingston upon Thames; his father was a German violinist and his mot ...
. Shortly after graduation, he debuted at the
Town Hall and
Carnegie Hall in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. He won the
Naumburg International Piano Competition
The Naumburg International Piano Competition is the name given to all the piano competitions sponsored by the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation. It is a competition for young pianists, of ages 17 to 32, organized in New York City, United States since ...
in 1940.
Career
Simon performed to critical acclaim. The critic
Harold C. Schonberg
Harold Charles Schonberg (29 November 1915 – 26 July 2003) was an American music critic and author. He is best known for his contributions in ''The New York Times'', where he was chief music critic from 1960 to 1980. In 1971, he became the fi ...
of the ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' once hailed Simon as a "supervirtuoso". Boston Globe critic
Richard Dyer
Richard Dyer (born 1945) is an English academic who held a professorship in the Department of Film Studies at King's College London. Specialising in cinema (particularly Italian cinema), queer theory, and the relationship between entertainment ...
wrote, "Simon's recital offered more than a glimpse into the fabled
golden age of piano playing...His virtuosity is marked not only by speed, power, lightness and accuracy but also by intricate interplay of voices and lambent colors."
Simon toured in Europe, the Middle East, and the Pacific. He appeared with the
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...
,
Boston Symphony
The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...
,
Chicago Symphony,
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, ) is a Dutch symphony orchestra, based at the Amsterdam Royal Concertgebouw (concert hall). Considered one of the world's leading orchestras, Queen Beatrix conferred the " ...
,
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orc ...
, Houston Symphony, and the Trenton Symphony Orchestra, among many others.
Simon gave
master classes
A master class is a class given to students of a particular discipline by an expert of that discipline—usually music, but also science, painting, drama, games, or on any other occasion where skills are being developed.
"Masterclass" is also ...
at the
Royal Academy of Music in London,
Royal Conservatory of The Hague
The Royal Conservatoire ( nl, Koninklijk Conservatorium, KC) is a conservatoire in The Hague, providing higher education in music and dance. The conservatoire was founded by King William I in 1826, making it the oldest conservatoire in the Nether ...
, and the
Geneva Conservatory. From 1960 to 1974, he was a faculty member at
Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana.
Campuses
Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI.
*Indiana Universi ...
, where he taught alongside his Curtis classmates Bolet and Foster. He also served on the faculties of the
Manhattan School of Music,
Hunter College, the
Moores School of Music
The Rebecca and John J. Moores School of Music is the music school of the University of Houston. The Moores School offers the Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Arts in Music, Master of Music, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in music performance ...
in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
, and the
Juilliard School of Music in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. His students include pianists Josef Verba,
Eliza Garth,
Frederic Chiu
Frederic Chiu (born 20 October 1964) is an American classical concert pianist.
Education
Chiu was born in Ithaca, New York. He studied music seriously with William Eltzroth at Butler University in Indianapolis, IN, with Karen Shaw (and also stud ...
, Karen Shaw, John Kamitsuka,
Erika Nickrenz, Richard Dowling, Elyane Laussade, Adrienne Park,
Roger Wright, Garnet Ungar, Hsia-Jung Chang,
Shelly Berg, Andrew Cooperstock, Daniel Glover, David Korevaar, Nancy Weems,
Terence Yung and
Martha Argerich
Martha Argerich (; Eastern Catalan: ™É¾Ê’əˈɾik born 5 June 1941) is an Argentine classical concert pianist. She is widely considered to be one of the greatest pianists of all time.
Early life and education
Argerich was born in Buenos A ...
.
In addition to performing, teaching, and recording as a musical artist, Abbey Simon served as a jury member of the
Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition (The Cliburn) is an American piano competition by The Cliburn, first held in 1962 in Fort Worth, Texas and hosted by the Van Cliburn Foundation. Initially held at Texas Christian University, the c ...
, the
Geneva International Music Competition
The Geneva International Music Competition () is one of the world's leading international music competitions, founded in 1939. In 1957, it was one of the founding members of the World Federation of International Music Competition (WFIMC), whose he ...
, the
Leeds International Piano Competition
The Leeds International Piano Competition, informally known as The Leeds and formerly the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, takes place every three years in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1961 by Marion, Countess ...
, the
Clara Haskil International Piano Competition
The Clara Haskil Piano Competition (French: Concours international de piano Clara Haskil) was founded in 1963 in order to honour and perpetuate the memory the Romanian-Swiss pianist Clara Haskil.
The competition is a member of the World Federati ...
, the
Sydney International Piano Competition
The Sydney International Piano Competition is a music competition, presented in Sydney and broadcast live throughout Australia and internationally. It is held every four years, over a three-week period in July–August, and is internationally r ...
, and the South Africa International Piano Competition.
Simon lived in
Geneva, Switzerland
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
. He maintained a home in
Houston, Texas, where he was, from 1977 until his retirement in April 2019, Cullen Distinguished Professor of Music in the
Moores School of Music
The Rebecca and John J. Moores School of Music is the music school of the University of Houston. The Moores School offers the Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Arts in Music, Master of Music, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in music performance ...
at the University of Houston.
Simon died in Geneva on December 18, 2019, a few weeks shy of his 100th birthday.
Awards and honors
*
Walter Naumburg Prize, (1940)
* National Orchestral Award
* Federation of Music Prize
* Harriet Cohen Medal
* Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Medal
* Ford Foundation Award
* Distinguished Teacher Award at the Moores School of Music
Discography
Abbey Simon recorded extensively on the
VOX,
Philips
Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
, and
HMV
Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom.
The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
labels. His discography includes the complete works of
Frédéric Chopin and
Maurice Ravel, major works of
Johannes Brahms and
Robert Schumann, and all of the piano concerti of
Sergei Rachmaninoff with
Leonard Slatkin
Leonard Edward Slatkin (born September 1, 1944) is an American conductor, author and composer.
Early life and education
Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a Jewish musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His fat ...
and the
St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.
*Albeniz-Godowsky:
**Triana from "Iberia" (DANACORD DACOCD 379)
*Beethoven:
**Quintet for piano and winds (VOX-Turnabout TVC 37004)
*Brahms:
**Concerto No. 1 in D-minor (Prize Winning Recording of a live performance, Buenos-Aires, dir. Juan-Jose Castro)
**Variations on a theme by Paganini, Op. 35 (VOX VU 9004)
**Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op. 24 & Variations on a theme by Paganini (PHILIPS A 00195 L)
**Three pieces for piano solo (HMV)
**F minor Sonata, Op. 5 (HMV)
**Intermezzi, Capriccios, Fantasies and Rhapsodies (PHILIPS)
*Chopin:
**The Four Scherzi (VOX VU 9030)
**The Four Ballades, Impromptus, and Berceuse (VOX VU 9031)
**The Sonatas and Barcarolle (VOX VU 9032)
**Etudes, Op.10 & 25 (VOX VU 9033)
**The Complete Waltzes, Fantasie & Variations Brillantes (VOX VU 9034)
**Nocturnes (complete) (VOX CDX 5146)
**Preludes (VOX)
**The Piano Concertos (HMV, EMI D 13175Z) (Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, dir. Sir Eugene Goossens)
**The Complete Orchestral Works (VOX 5002) (Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, dir. Heribert Beissel)
*Dohnanyi:
**Variations on a Nursery Song (UNESCO classics DCL707202)
*Franck:
**Prélude, Chorale and Fugue (HMV)
*Grieg:
**Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 (Philips)
*Liszt:
**Six Grandes Etudes de Paganini (VOX VU 9004)
**Etude in D-flat major (Un Sospiro) (HMV)
*Mendelssohn:
**17 Variations Sérieuses (VOX TVS 34460)
*Rachmaninoff:
**The Complete Works for Piano & Orchestra (VOX CDX 5008) (St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, dir. Leonard Slatkin)
**Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No 3 in D minor, Op. 30 (To be released) (Japan Philharm. Orchestra, dir. Akeo Watanabe)
*Ravel:
**Piano Concerto in G (VOX CDX 5031)
**Piano Concerto in D for the Left Hand (VOX CDX 5032) (Orchestre de Radio-Luxembourg, Dir. Louis de Froment)
**Complete Works for Piano Solo (VOX CDX 5012)
*Saint-Saëns:
**Le Carnaval des Animaux (EMI Classics DCL 707202) (With Hephzibah Menuhin and the Philharmonia Orchestra, dir. Efrem Kurz)
*Schumann:
**Variations on the name ABEGG, Kreisleriana, Arabesque, Kinderscenen (DANTE PSG 9649)
**Carnaval, Op. 9 & Fantasy in C, Op. 17 (VOX ACD 8192)
*Transcriptions:
**by Liszt, Rachmaninoff, Godowsky, Chasins (VOX 8204)
References
External links
Official website* Moores School of Music Faculty Profile
Abbey Simon* Yamaha Artists
A Chat with Piano Legend Abbey Simonby Mike Emery, ''The Houston Chronicle'', January 31, 2014
by Bruce Duffie, February 19, 1988
* Abbey Simon dedicated photo 1965, from first of two acclaimed tours of Southern Afric
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon, Abbey
Curtis Institute of Music alumni
American classical pianists
Texas classical music
1920 births
2019 deaths
Musicians from New York City
University of Houston faculty
Jewish classical pianists
20th-century American Jews
20th-century American pianists
American male pianists
21st-century classical pianists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male musicians
21st-century American pianists
21st-century American Jews