Earl Wild

The pianist and composer Earl Wild was born in Pittsburgh on 26 November 1915. One of the legendary Romantic Revivalist originals of the post-war era, fabled for his transcendental transcriptions of Gershwin and Rachmaninov no less than his illustrious discography of the Romantic concerto and solo repertory, he studied with Selmar Jansen and Egon Petri, through them tracing a line directly back to Scharwenka, d'Albert and Busoni. From 1937 to 1944 he was pianist of the NBC Symphony Orchestra, in November 1942 appearing with Benny Goodman as soloist in the famous Toscanini Carnegie Hall concert recording of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. In 1939 he gave the first piano recital on American television. He joined the piano faculty of the Juilliard School in 1977. AO

Earl Wild died in Palm Springs on 23 January 2010.

A selection of articles about Earl Wild

What Harpsichordists Can Learn From Paderewski - Endre Anaru investigates, and offers a suggestion

'Obscure' Repertoire - Important advice for pianists

Ensemble. All the Magic of the Original - Piano arrangements played by Jenny Lin, enjoyed by Mike Wheeler

Great Delicacy - Jenny Lin at Notttingham's Royal Concert Hall, heard by Mike Wheeler

CD Spotlight. Quite Breathtaking - David Korevaar plays Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, admired by Howard Smith. '... lots to admire ...'

CD Spotlight. Glittering Technique - Music by Gershwin for piano and orchestra, reviewed by Howard Smith. '... commendable drive and clarity.'

CD Spotlight - Discreet pleasures. '... incomparable authority and elegance ...' Earl Wild plays Hahn's 'Le Rossignol éperdu', appreciated by John Bell Young