Van Cliburn, Celebrated Pianist of the Late 20th Century
If you’ve taken piano lessons for any length of time, you’ve probably heard about Van Cliburn, or the piano competition named after him, the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Have you ever wondered why he is so famous?
Think back to the late 1950’s. The United States and the Soviet Union are at the height of the Cold War. The Russians just launched Sputnik in 1957, beating the Americans to space. All around America, there is a very real fear that the Cold War might become hot – and an urgent need not to let the Russians get ahead in any other area.
In 1958, hot on the heels of its Sputnik success, the Soviet Union announced the International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition, to be held in Moscow. The goal? To prove to the world that Russia was preeminent in culture as well as technology. It was going to be another black eye for the Americans. Another propaganda victory for the system of Communism.
A 23-year-old American pianist from Texas was among those who entered the competition. A graduate of The Juilliard School, Harvey Lavan “Van” Cliburn Jr. had already debuted at Carnegie Hall. At Juilliard, Van Cliburn had studied under Rosina Levinne , under whose mentorship he became familiar with the great Russian piano traditions.
Van Cliburn took the first Tchaikovsky piano competition by storm. He performed Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 – two of the piano world’s most celebrated piano works by two of the most celebrated Russian composers. And there, in the heart of Russia, playing Russian music for a Russian audience, this Texan pianist earned a standing ovation that lasted for eight minutes.
The competition’s judges wanted to award Cliburn first prize, but they needed to ask permission of the Soviet dictator Kruschev to award the prize to an American. Kruschev is reported to have said, “Is he the best? Then give him the prize!”
And thus Van Cliburn won an important cultural and psychological victory for America in the Cold War. He returned to a ticker-tape parade in New York – the only classical musician ever honored so. His later recording of the Tchaikovsky concerto was the first classical recording to go platinum, and remained the best-selling classical recording for a decade.
In the early 1960’s Van Cliburn agreed to be an artistic consultant and to lend his name to a new piano competition based in Fort Worth, Texas. The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition has since become one of the most prestigious competitions in the classical piano world. Held every four years, the Van Cliburn Competition is open to amateurs below the age of 35.
The six finalists all win a 3-year, fully-managed international performing tour, a prize worth approximately $1 million apiece. All six finalists also win the right to a solo recital and a concert accompanied by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. The first-, second-, and third-place winners also each win a $20,000 cash prize and a trophy cup.
Van Cliburn himself, still spry in his 70’s, continues to give a few select performances every year. And now you know why he is so famous.
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