Leonid Hambro
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Leonid Hambro (June 26, 1920 Chicago - October 23, 2006 New York City) was an American concert pianist and composer.
[edit] Life
He was the son of immigrant Russian Jews; his father was a pianist accompanying silent films.
He studied at the Juilliard School, and won First Prize at the National Naumburg Competition in 1946. He was the musical sidekick of Victor Borge for ten years, from 1961 to 1970. In 1970 he became the Head of the Piano Department of the California Institute of the Arts, at Valencia, California, and Assistant Dean of the School of Music, holding these posts until 1992.
Leonid Hambro was Artist in Residence of the Aspen Institute and the official pianist of radio WQXR, New York. He played with the P. D. Q. Bach performances and the Hoffnung Musical Spoof Concerts. He published with Jascha Zayde The Complete Pianist (Ludlow Music Inc., New York). He also composed the piano piece Happy Birthday Dear Ludwig, a set of five variations on "Happy Birthday to You" in the style of many famous Beethoven pieces such as Minuet in G, Sonata Pathétique, "Moonlight" Sonata, Für Elise, and the Fifth Symphony.
On December 22, 2003, he entertained the members of the New York Atheists Inc. at their first annual NYC Atheists Solstice Dinner and Party at the Hunan 5th Avenue Restaurant. He claimed to have been born an atheist and never having belonged to any congregation throughout his life.[1]
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- Obituary, Jewish Chronicle, January 19, 2007 p.45
