André Watts | |
|---|---|
 Watts in 1971 | |
| Born | (1946-06-20)June 20, 1946 |
| Died | July 12, 2023(2023-07-12) (aged 77) Bloomington, Indiana, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Peabody Institute |
| Occupations |
|
| Spouse | Joan Brand |
| Children | 2 (stepchildren) |
| Website | cmartists |
| External audio | |
|---|---|
 André Watts performingLudwig van Beethoven'sPiano Concerto No. 4 Op. 58 withWilliam Steinberg conducting theBoston Symphony Orchestra in 1970 |
André Watts (June 20, 1946 – July 12, 2023) was an American classical pianist. Over the six decades of his career, Watts performed as soloist with every major American orchestra and most of the world's finest orchestras,[1] including theNew York Philharmonic,National Symphony Orchestra, andLondon Symphony Orchestra. Watts recorded a variety of repertoire, concentrating on Romantic era composers such asFrédéric Chopin andFranz Liszt, but also includingGeorge Gershwin.[2] In 2020, he was elected to theAmerican Philosophical Society.[3] He won aGrammy Award for Best New Classical Artist in 1964.[4] Watts was also on the faculty at theJacobs School of Music ofIndiana University.
Born inNuremberg,Allied-occupied Germany, Watts was the son of a Hungarian mother, Maria Alexandra Gusmits, a pianist; and an American father, Herman Watts, aU.S. Army non-commissioned officer. André spent his early childhood in Europe, living mostly near army posts where his father was stationed.[5]
Watts began to study the violin when he was four. By six he decided the piano was his instrument.[6] When André was eight years old, Herman's military assignment brought the family to the United States. They settled inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania.[6] His mother started him with his first piano lessons. As do many children, Watts disliked practicing.[7] For encouragement, his mother would tell stories of the great pianist and composerFranz Liszt, making it clear that Liszt practiced faithfully. Watts found inspiration in Liszt, adopting his theatrical playing style.
At age ten, Watts performedMendelssohn'sG minor concerto at the Robin Hood Dell outdoor amphitheater, where thePhiladelphia Orchestra had given summer performances (from 1933 through 1975), and at fourteen,Franck'sSymphonic Variations, again with the Philadelphia Orchestra.[8]
After the divorce of his parents in 1959, Watts remained with his mother,[9] who supported them by working as a secretary and later as a receptionist.
Watts enrolled at thePhiladelphia Musical Academy (now a part of theUniversity of the Arts), where he studied with Genia Robinor, Doris Bawden, and Clement Petrillo, graduating in June 1963. He entered his first competition at nine, with forty other children, for the opportunity to perform with thePhiladelphia Orchestra Children's Concerts. Watts won the competition playing the first movement ofJoseph Haydn'sPiano Concerto in D.[9][10]
At sixteen, Watts auditioned atCarnegie Recital Hall in a competition to play in conductorLeonard Bernstein's televisedYoung People's Concert series with theNew York Philharmonic.[7] Watts' performance of the LisztPiano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat at a Young People's Concert on January 12, 1963, was videotaped and nationally televised onCBS on January 15, 1963.[11][12] Before the concert, Bernstein introduced Watts to the national television audience, stating that he "flipped" when he first heard Watts play.[9]
On January 31, 1963, Bernstein asked the 16-year-old Watts to fill in for the ailingGlenn Gould, the scheduled soloist for the New York Philharmonic's regular subscription concert. Watts again played the Liszt E-flat Concerto. At its conclusion, the orchestra joined the audience in a thundrous standing ovation.[9] Watts' firstLP,The Exciting Debut of André Watts, was shortly thereafter released onColumbia Masterworks records and included the Liszt Concerto with Bernstein and the Philharmonic.[5]
Following graduation, Watts enrolled at thePeabody Institute inBaltimore, where he studied part-time for a Bachelor of Music degree with pianistLeon Fleisher.[13] The following year, he appeared at New York City'sLewisohn Stadium with conductorSeiji Ozawa, and the New York Philharmonic, performingCamille Saint-Saëns'Concerto No. 2 in G minor. In September 1963, he again performed the Liszt concerto at theHollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. He opened the 1964–65 season of theNational Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., again performing the Saint-Saëns concerto. He returned to New York in January 1965 to performChopin'sConcerto No. 2 in F minor. Watts made his European debut in a London performance with theLondon Symphony Orchestra in June 1966.[8]
By 1969, he was on a full-scale concert schedule, booked three years in advance. Watts made his Boston debut in 1969 for thePeabody Mason Concert series.[14] He graduated from the Peabody Institute in 1972. He signed a long-term exclusive contract withColumbia Masterworks Records on his 21st birthday.[15] The contract ended in 1977.[16]
In February 1973, Watts was selected asMusical America's Musician of the Month.[17] His other honors and awards includeddoctor honoris causa degrees fromAlbright College andYale University, the Order of Zaire,[8] a University of the Arts Medal from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia,[18] and theNational Medal of Arts.[19]
By the mid-1970s, Watts was giving 150 concerts, recitals, and chamber performances per season, performing about eight months out of the year. In 1976, at age thirty, he celebrated his tenth consecutive appearance in theLincoln Center Great Performers Series atAvery Fisher Hall. ThePBS Sunday afternoon telecast was the first solo recital presented onLive from Lincoln Center and the first full-length recital to be aired nationally in prime time.[20]
In 1985, he signed a recording contract withEMI, with whom he recorded until the early 1990s. He also recorded forTelarc.[21]
In November 2002, Watts suffered asubdural hematoma and underwent emergency surgery.[22] In 2004, he also had surgery for aruptured disc which was affecting the use of his left hand. He continued performing regularly after recovering from the aforementioned surgeries.[23]
In 2004, Watts joined the faculty at Indiana University, where he held the Jack I. and Dora B. Hamlin Endowed Chair in Music.[24][25]
In 2019, Watts underwent surgery for a nerve injury to his left hand resulting in the cancellation of several performances.[26] He reworked theRavel Concerto for Left Hand to perform with his right hand and was planning to perform the work with theDetroit andAtlanta Symphony Orchestras. Ultimately, however, he was unable to perform the concerto due to the pandemic and continuing health issues.[6]
Watts was married to Joan Brand, had two stepchildren, and had seven step-grandchildren.[6] He was diagnosed withprostate cancer in July 2016,[6] and died of the disease at home inBloomington, Indiana, on July 12, 2023, at age 77.[10]
