Van Cliburn Died Today

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It's hard to get just how famous Van Cliburn was back in the years after he won the first Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (he got a ticker-tape parade in Manhattan, and his first album went platinum)--and what it meant to go into the heart of Soviet territory and show them how to play a signature work by their own legendary composer. His win was Paul Henderson's goal in the 1972 Summit Series, Rocky's pounding of Drago, Reagan's "tear down this wall."

I wrote about his performance of Tchaikovsky's first concerto a few years back, and the best obituary I've seen today has been NPR's. Take some time and listen.

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