John Ogdon
John Andrew Howard Ogdon (27 January 1937 – 1 August 1989) was an English pianist and composer.[1]
Biography
Career
Ogdon was born in
He won first prize at the London Liszt Competition in 1961 and consolidated his growing international reputation by winning another first prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1962, jointly with Vladimir Ashkenazy.
Ogdon was able to play most pieces at sight and had committed a huge range of pieces to memory. He intended to record the complete piano works of
On 2 February 1969, on British television, he gave the first modern performance of Edward Elgar's Concert Allegro, Op. 46. The piece was never published and the manuscript had long been believed lost, but it came to light in 1968. Ogdon and Diana McVeigh developed a performing version of the piece from Elgar's manuscript, which was full of corrections, deletions and additions. Between 1976 and 1980 Ogdon was Professor of Music (Piano) at Indiana University.[5] He completed four comprehensive tours of Southern Africa to enthusiastic acclaim between 1968 and 1976[6] and dedicated a composition to his tour organizer Hans Adler.[7]
His own compositions number more than 200, and include four operas, two large works for orchestra, three cantatas, songs, chamber music, a substantial amount of music for solo piano, and two piano concertos, the first of which he recorded. The majority of his music was composed for the piano. These include 50 transcriptions of works by composers as diverse as Stravinsky, Palestrina, Mozart, Satie and Wagner. He also made piano arrangements of songs by Cole Porter, Jerome Kern and George Gershwin and he wrote unaccompanied sonatas for violin, flute and cello. A planned symphony based on the works of Herman Melville, and a comic opera were left unfinished. The original manuscripts of many of Ogdon's compositions are deposited in the Royal Northern College of Music Library.[8]
Breakdown
Ogdon's health was good, and his physical constitution was strong, as his wife often recalled in her biography. Regarded as a "gentle giant", known and loved for his kindness and generosity, he had tremendous energy. But an everyday business argument seemed to upset him more than expected and then suddenly in 1973 he experienced a severe breakdown. This sometimes changed his personality completely. His illness was initially diagnosed as schizophrenia, but then changed to manic depression (now referred to as bipolar disorder). Either condition may have been inherited from his father, who suffered several psychotic episodes and a mental breakdown.[9] Ogdon spent some time in the Maudsley Hospital in London, and in general needed more nursing than it was possible to provide while touring. Nevertheless, he was reported to maintain three hours' practice a day on the hospital's piano.
In 1983, after emerging from hospital, he played at the opening of the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham. In 1988 he released a five-disc recording of Sorabji's Opus clavicembalisticum. He died in August 1989 of pneumonia, brought on by undiagnosed diabetes.
Legacy
His wife Brenda, along with writer Michael Kerr, wrote a biography of her life with him in 1981, and released a second edition in 1989, shortly before his death.[10] Another biography by Charles Beauclerk was published in March 2014.[9]
In the BBC film about his life, Virtuoso, based on the biography, Ogdon was played by Alfred Molina, who won a Best Actor award from the Royal Television Society for the performance. The production interpreted Ogdon's illness as manic depression rather than schizophrenia, since he had responded much better to treatment for the former condition. Brenda Ogdon also recalled being informed that his obsessive musical work could have been interpreted as a symptom of manic depression.
In June 2014 John Ogdon: Living with Genius, directed by Zoe Dobson, was broadcast on BBC Four.[11] The programme was followed by John Ogdon: A Musical Tribute featuring piano performances by Peter Donohoe, including Ogdon's own Theme and Variations.[12]
In 1990, Gordon Rumson, another devoted advocate for Sorabji's music, composed the piano piece Threnody for John Ogdon.[13] Organist Kevin Bowyer commissioned and premiered Alistair Hinton's organ work Pansophiae for John Ogdon (Hinton is the curator of the Sorabji Archive and worked with Ogdon on the recording of Sorabji's Opus clavicembalisticum).[14]
Ogdon is survived by his daughter and son, Annabel and Richard Ogdon.[citation needed]
Discography
A reasonably comprehensive discography can be found on the website of the John Ogdon Foundation reproduced from
- Ludwig van Beethoven
- Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111
- Recorded in the BBC studios, London, 5 November 1963[15]
- Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 5 in E♭ major, Op. 73
- Recorded with the BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra and Jascha Horenstein[16]
- Recorded with the
- 32 Variations on an original theme in C minor, WoO 80[16]
- Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111
- Sir Arthur Bliss
- Piano Concerto in B-flat, BBC Symphony Orchestra under the composer, 2 August 1966, Bliss birthday concert
- Johannes Brahms
- Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in B♭ major, Op. 83
- Recorded in the BBC Studios, Manchester, 16 September 1966 with the Hallé Orchestra and John Barbirolli[15]
- Recorded in the BBC Studios, Manchester, 16 September 1966 with the
- Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2 in B♭ major, Op. 83
- Percy Grainger
- Transcription of Lullaby from Tribute to Foster
- Recorded at the 1966 Aldeburgh Festival[17]
- Shepherd's Hey
- Recorded at the 1966 Aldeburgh Festival[17]
- Zanzibar Boat Song
- Recorded at the 1966 Aldeburgh Festival with Benjamin Britten and Viola Tunnard[17]
- Transcription of Lullaby from Tribute to Foster
- Alun Hoddinott
- Sonata No. 3, Op. 40
- Recorded at the 23rd Cheltenham Festival[18]
- Sonata No. 3, Op. 40
- Franz Liszt
- Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1 in E♭ major, S.124
- Recorded in the Colston Hall, Bristol, 20 September 1967[19]
- Mephisto Waltz No. 1 (Der Tanz in der Dorfschenke), S.514
- Recorded in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, 24 April 1969[19]
- Grande Fantaisie de bravoure sur La Clochette (La campanella) de Paganini, S.420
- Recorded in the BBC studios, London, 20 January 1970[19]
- Grande Etude S.137, No.11 (1837 version of Etude d'exécution transcendente S.139, No. 11 Harmonies du soir)
- Recorded in the BBC studios, London, 20 January 1970[19]
- Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1 in E♭ major, S.124
- Tilo Medek
- "Battaglia alla Turca" for two pianos, from Mozart's Rondo alla Turca
- Recorded live in London in 1974 with John Lill[20]
- "Battaglia alla Turca" for two pianos, from Mozart's Rondo alla Turca
- Nikolai Medtner
- Franz Schubert
- Piano Sonata in C minor, D.958
- Recorded in 1972 for the BBC[16]
- Piano Sonata in C minor, D.958
- Dmitri Shostakovich
- Piano Sonata No. 2 in B minor, Op. 61
- Recorded in 1971 for the BBC[17]
- Piano Sonata No. 2 in B minor, Op. 61
- Igor Stravinsky
Recordings
- Ferruccio Busoni: Fantasia contrappuntistica, Fantasia nach J. S. Bach, and Toccata. Altarus AIR-CD-9074
- Ferruccio Busoni: Piano Concerto (with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Daniell Revenaugh, conductor). EMI Classics 94637246726
- Kaikhosru Sorabji: Opus clavicembalisticum. Altarus AIR-CD9075
References
- ^ a b "John Ogdon". oldmansfieldwoodhousesociety.com. 5 January 2020. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- ^ "The John Ogdon Complete Discography". johnogdon.org.uk. Archived from the original on 10 April 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ "Brenda Lucas Ogdon piano – Recordings". brendalucasogdon.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ISBN 978-2-3505-5192-0
- ^ "John Ogdon (Piano) – Short Biography". bach-cantatas.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ "Celebrated musicians' concert tours of Southern Africa 1953–1978: John Ogdon, British Pianist". Classicalmusicianstoza.blogspot.com. 21 June 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- ^ "Hans Adler Classical Music Museum Rare and Notable literary "finds"". Aldercraft.blogspot.com. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- ^ "John Ogdon the Composer". johnogdon.org.uk. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ OCLC 762990291.
- ^ Lucas Ogdon, B. & Kerr, M. (2008). Virtuoso. Bury St Edmunds: Arima Publishing.
- ^ "BBC Four – John Ogdon: Living with Genius". BBC. 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
- ^ "BBC Four – John Ogdon: A Musical Tribute". BBC. 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
- OCLC 51874505.
- ^ Roberge, Marc-André. "Sorabji Resource Site: Biographical Notes". roberge.mus.ulaval.ca. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ a b BBC Legends Disc BBCL 4183-2
- ^ a b c BBC Legends Disc BBCL 4142-2
- ^ a b c d e BBC Legends Programme on Radio 3 presented by Piers Lane circa 2003
- ^ a b c "The John Ogdon Foundation: Items for Sale". johnogdon.org.uk. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ a b c d BBC Legends Disc BBCL 4089-2
- ^ "John Ogdon & John Lill play Tilo Medek 'Battaglia alla turca'". 26 November 2010. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2014 – via YouTube.
- ^ Information gleaned from The National Sound Archive – recording NP1978R, BBC Radio 3 197251 (1 May 1972?) (found from a search Ogdon AND Medtner).
External links
- John Ogdon on BBC Desert Island Discs
- The John Ogdon Foundation
- allmusic.com biography
- Virtuoso biographical programme on Ogdon's life on IMDb
- Portrait of John Ogdon at the Piano (aquatint by George Adamson RE published on the record sleeve of William Alwyn: Fantasy – Waltzes, 12 Preludes played by John Ogdon)