Remembering the great American pianist Earl Wild
The weekend brought news about Earl Wild, who died at the age of 94 Saturday in Palm Springs, where he lived with his partner of nearly 40 years, Michael Rolland Davis. Remarkably, Mr. Wild continued to perform into his 90s.
This extraordinary American pianist had a musical lineage that stretched right back to Liszt -- two of Mr. Wild's teachers studied with pupils of Liszt. And, like Liszt, Wild had a terrific, fearless technique. He could play just about anything, with exceptional technical skill, abundant tone coloring and musical taste. He also wrote his own transcriptions (another Lisztian trait).
The much-recorded pianist communicated not just the notes of a score, but the expressive essence of it and, perhaps above all else, the sheer joy of making music.
Mr. Wild was the last in a glorious line of keyboard virtuosos. He will be sorely missed. Here are a few souvenirs of his artistry:
Comments
And let's not forget that, like many of the great virtuosos from the past, Earl Wild was also a composer - not just an arranger. Certainly his "Doo-Dah Variations" are no worse than Ernst von Dohnanyi's "Variations on a Nursery Song."
The Earl Wild CD that I grew up with is that of Paderewski and Scharwenka Piano Concertos; the Paderewski recording offers us a rare opportunity to hear Arthur Fiedler in non-pops fare.
Earl Wild will be missed.
Posted by: Don Ciccio | January 25, 2010 8:38 AM