Van Cliburn - Los Angeles Times
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Obituaries

Van Cliburn

Van Cliburn plays in Minneapolis in 1977. He kept up a frenetic schedule of more than 100 concerts a year for two decades, until retiring from the performance circuit in 1978. In the mid-1990s he embarked on a long-anticipated comeback tour that drew poor reviews.

Van Cliburn plays in Minneapolis in 1977. He kept up a frenetic schedule of more than 100 concerts a year for two decades, until retiring from the performance circuit in 1978. In the mid-1990s he embarked on a long-anticipated comeback tour that drew poor reviews.  (Jim Mone / Associated Press)

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Van Cliburn was a pianist, of course. He will be remembered for that big technique, big physique and big Texan heart, all of which contributed to making him such a sensation when he played. But Cliburn, who died Wednesday at 78, may be remembered most for being a phenomenon.
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International Tchaikovsky Competition

Texas pianist Van Cliburn performs in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory in Moscow in April 1958 in front of a picture of Russian composer Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky during the first International Tchaikovsky Competition, which he won.  (Van Cliburn Foundation / Associated Press)

Accepting flowers

Van Cliburn accepts flowers from the audience in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory after one of his performances in April 1958 during the first International Tchaikovsky Competition. The technically brilliant Cliburn created a sensation with the romantic sweep of his playing.  (Van Cliburn Foundation / Associated Press)

Nikita Khrushchev

Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, right, embraces Texas pianist Van Cliburn in Moscow after Cliburn won the first International Tchaikovsky Competition.   (Van Cliburn Foundation / Associated Press)

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Boston Symphony

The Boston Symphony Orchestra plays “Happy Birthday” for pianist Van Cliburn on his 69th birthday at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass.   (Michael Dwyer / Associated Press)

Memorial concert

Van Cliburn performs at a concert dedicated to the memory of the victims of the Beslan school massacre in Moscow.   (Sergey Ponomarev / Associated Press)

White House

Van Cliburn is awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Obama during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.   (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press)

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