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Pianists View the "Horowitz Piano"
Recently, local pianists traveled to Clinton's Pianos in Rocky Hill to present their winter recital. Parents and friends in attendance enjoyed a wide selection of classical and popular music for piano solo and duet including sonatinas by Clementi, Chopin's Nocturne in F sharp major, Op. 15#2, The Entertainer by Scott Joplin and Beethoven's every popular Für Elise.
Highlight of the afternoon was the viewing of the famous 9-foot Steinway D grand piano owned by Russian pianist Vladimir Horowitz (1904-1989). For many years, the piano sat in the living room of the Horowitz' brownstone on East 94th Street in New York City. After the death of Horowitz' wife, Wanda Toscanini Horowitz, the Steinway was bequeathed to Yale University, which is currently in the process of preparing a special room to showcase the famous instrument. It is temporarily on display in the Clinton showroom on the Silas Dean Highway in Rocky Hill until its permanent resting place is completed at Yale.
Vladimir Horowitz, considered by many to be the greatest pianist of the 20th century, was convinced that his best recordings were made on this piano. He did not want to go back to RCA studios, where the acoustics were not to his liking. His last recording, performed on the 94th Street Steinway, took six sessions in a period of twelve days. The last session took place of November 1, 1989. Four days later, Horowitz was dead.
The students of Terryville piano teacher Nancy Westberg have spent the month of January studying the life and recordings of Horowitz. They prepared a lecture on Horowitz, which was presented in front of the famous Steinway piano. Pianists taking part in the lecture recital included Katelyn Julian, Erin and Erica Rocha, Theresa Pitassi, Christopher and Jessica Bigert, David Hunt, Stephanie Vivenzio, Hillary and Kylie Schultz, Nancy Westberg, Judith Crosswait and Barbara Hunt.
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