Leon Fleisher was an American classical pianist, conductor and pedagogue.
19 Facts About Leon Fleisher
2.
Leon Fleisher was one of the most renowned pianists and pedagogues in the world.
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Leon Fleisher was particularly well known for his interpretations of the two piano concertos of Brahms and the five concertos of Beethoven, which he recorded with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra.
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Leon Fleisher regained some control of his right hand then, and played and recorded two-hand repertoire.
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Leon Fleisher was notable as a conductor, and especially as a teacher for over 60 years at the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University, the Curtis Institute of Music and others.
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Leon Fleisher was a Kennedy Center Honors awardee in 2007, among many distinctions.
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Leon Fleisher was born on July 23,1928, in San Francisco, the son of Bertha and Isidor Leon Fleisher.
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Leon Fleisher's parents were Jewish immigrants, his father from Odessa and his mother from Poland.
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Leon Fleisher studied with Maria Curcio and Karl Ulrich Schnabel.
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Leon Fleisher was particularly well known for his interpretations of the piano concerti of Brahms and Beethoven, which he recorded with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra.
11.
When he was 24, Leon Fleisher became the first American to win a prestigious piano competition established by Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, which helped to catapult his career.
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In 1964, at the age of 36, Leon Fleisher lost the use of his right hand, due to a neurological condition that was eventually diagnosed as focal dystonia.
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In 1967, Leon Fleisher commenced performing and recording the left-handed repertoire while searching for a cure for his condition.
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In 2004, Leon Fleisher played the world premiere of Paul Hindemith's Klaviermusik, Op.
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On October 2,2005, Leon Fleisher played the American premiere of the work, with the San Francisco Symphony under Herbert Blomstedt.
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In 2012, at the invitation of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Leon Fleisher performed at the Supreme Court of the United States.
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Leon Fleisher continued to be involved in music, both conducting and teaching for more than 60 years at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, the Curtis Institute of Music, and the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto; he was closely associated with the Tanglewood Music Center.
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Leon Fleisher's students include Frank Levy, Andre Watts, Yefim Bronfman, Helene Grimaud, Louis Lortie, Dina Koston, Jonathan Biss, Nicholas Angelich, Joel Fan, and Galen Deibler.
19.
Leon Fleisher died in Baltimore, Maryland, on August 2,2020, at age 92.