RIP Van Cliburn.....Anyone else remember hearing him?

[dixiegrrrrl]

I can STILL hear his version of Beethoven's Emperor Concerto in my head, decades after hearing it for the first time.
(gotta admit I was really stoned when I first heard it).

[In_The_Wind]

1. RIP Van Cliburn

yes, I remember him. [img][/img]

[lame54]

10. Isn't that the guy who slept for 20 years?

[In_The_Wind]

11. R.V.W.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

2. Would have gotten stoned more often...

if I had known it would help keep an entire concerto in my head!

[dixiegrrrrl]

4. Sounds weird, don't it?

I have crystal clear memories of several incidents when I was very stoned on very good weed, back in the mid 70's.
hearing the concerto is one, and learning to play GO is another.
Then again, I have total blanks for other things during that same time.

I DID learn that writing a term paper at 2 am while eating laced brownies does not produce the masterpiece one had hoped for.....

[Sekhmets Daughter]

5. Very insightful re: the term paper!

I was way stoned learning how to play Backgammon...never thought about it, but perhaps that's why I played it so well!

[GoCubsGo]

3. My mom played him a lot when I was little.

I even have one of his albums. Sad to see him go.

[Paladin]

6. My Family Never Missed His Performances On Ed Sullivan.

A brilliant musician whose life really had an impact.

[Tom Ripley]

9. Same experience in my family

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

7. I remember seeing him on TV on the Ed Sullivan Show

I was a kid then studying violin, piano, and guitar. In those days, at least half my classmates were studying a musical instrument, either in band or orchestra or both. Van Cliburn became a household name, something almost unheard of for a classical musician today. His popularity did a lot to encourage young people to study music. Physically, he kind of reminded me of John F. Kennedy, but maybe it was because of his hair.

[In_The_Wind]

12. Beautiful!

[Sekhmets Daughter]

13. I remember when he won the International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition...

I had all of his vinyls...

[magical thyme]

8. I heard him live in my early 20s

Went backstage after, got autographed program and bear hug. He was very tall, very thin, and maybe a little shy...

I have several albums, but no turntable to play them on any more...