Abbey Simon

Born in New York on January 8, 1920, Abbey Simon maintained an extended professional life that encompassed both public recitals and pedagogical work; although public awareness remained narrower than that of more heavily promoted pianists, he secured notable visibility through his recordings, above all those issued by the Vox label. His core repertoire drew from the Romantic era and the early twentieth century, with particular focus on compositions by Chopin, Schumann, Rachmaninov, and Ravel. In addition to sustaining a busy concert schedule, Simon earned distinction as an instructor at multiple institutions and created a respected international piano competition.

Following private lessons, the legendary pianist Josef Hofmann awarded him a scholarship to the Curtis Institute, where he studied from 1932 to 1940. His teachers were David Saperton, son-in-law of Leopold Godowsky; Harold Bauer, a pianist rooted in the Romantic tradition but modern in his approach to questing after the essence of the printed score; and Dora Zaslavsky. In 1940 he received the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation Award, which opened the way for his New York recital debut at Town Hall. Several Carnegie Hall recitals preceded his first European tour in 1949, an experience during which he “found himself” and began refining his interpretive methods. Later travels extended to South Africa, South America, Australia, and the Middle East.

Further honors included the National Orchestral Award, the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Award, and the Harriet Cohen Medal. Critics consistently commended his technical command and scrupulous musicianship; New York reviewers regularly wrote such phrases as “Phenomenal! Control of near-miraculous order” and “One of the finest, most hypnotic virtuoso techniques of the day.” From 1960 onward Simon occupied several teaching posts and demonstrated notable effectiveness and sensitivity as an instructor. He remained on the faculty of Indiana University until 1974, then held concurrent appointments at the Juilliard School of Music and the University of Houston, where he served as Cullen Distinguished Professor at the Moores School of Music. There he founded the International Piano Festival, which presented recitals by prominent pianists, among them Simon himself, together with master classes and conversation lunches.

Simon’s performances embodied, to a marked extent, the equilibrium of power and clarity instilled by Bauer; although his technique was generous and virtuosic, a reflective restraint curbed any drift toward excess or bombast. In his review of Simon’s all-Chopin Carnegie Hall recital of 1999, critic Allan Kozinn remarked that the event underscored “there is also a coolly rational side to his pianism.” An extensive recorded legacy on EMI, Philips, and especially Vox preserved his reputation among listeners who had never attended his concerts. These discs comprised the complete piano works of Ravel, complete recordings of works for piano and orchestra by Chopin and Rachmaninov, as well as numerous solo works by Schumann, Chopin, Saint-Saëns, Brahms, and Paganini. Simon died in Geneva on December 18, 2019.