2 February 1978 "It was in the second half of the seventies that I asked Jorge to give a recital in my home town Bilthoven [a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht], part of the municipality De Bilt (Netherlands). Jorge agreed and the concert was arranged by the cultural department of the Town Hall. "The concert was part of a tour, including Amsterdam, of Jorge playing the new Bechstein EN. So the tour was joined by Ulrich Adam, artist representative for Bechstein. (Later Mr Adam moved to Steinway where he did a great job for the cooperation between Steinway and Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli.) "The recital was great and all of us, including Tex, had great fun. Later I was told that the local record shop Radio Sound sold hundreds of copies of Jorge's Ensayo recording of Liszt's transcriptions, even years after the recital. (The RCA Carnegie Hall recital of 1974 was not available in Holland). "If I am not mistaken some encores of this recital can be found on Marston CDs." Mattheus Smits [The recital took place in the hall of the R.I.V., Antonie van Leeuwenhoek Avenue. This was the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (Dutch: Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu). Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek (Delft, 1632 – 1723) was a Dutch microbiologist and microscopist in the Golden Age of Dutch art, science and technology. A largely self-taught man in science, he is commonly known as "the Father of Microbiology".] Marston CDs Vol. 1: Waltz No. 6 in D-flat, op. 64, no. 1, “Minute” Waltz No. 14 in E minor, op. posth De Bilt, The Netherlands; 1978

A very incomplete list. Feel free to add to it, using the Contact page. Jacobs School of Music, Bloomington, Indiana Francisco Rennó (Brazil) Gary Thor Wedow Glenn Winters (1970-76) Curtis Institute, Philadelphia Meng-Chieh Liu (Kaohsiung, Taiwan) Ira Levin Ju Hee Suh (Seoul, South Korea, 1967- ) Makoto Ueno (Japan) see here Thomas Sauer (USA) see here Anthony Padilla Graydon Goldsby Wonmi Kim (South Korea) Gustavo Rivero Weber (Mexico) Studied with JB (privately) Teresa Escandon Henry Lowinger Panayis Lyras (Panaghis Lykiardopoulos [1953-2025], Athens, Greece) A selection of students from masterclasses Hélène Grimaud Barry Douglas (Northern Ireland, UK) José Feghali (Brazil, 1961- 2014) Kathryn Stott (UK) Philip Smith (UK) Marc-Antonio Barone (USA) Wolfgang Manz (Germany)

On 8 June 1989, JB gave his last public recital (in Berlin, Germany) Mattheus Smits has sent me a photo of the last page of the schedule with a note: "As you can see on this itinerary the last performance of Jorge with an orchestra was Rachmaninoff's third concerto in Herford and Paderborn. The conductor was Alun Francis. The performance was recorded and broadcasted by WDR. "I was not able to attend but my good friend Hans did. Jorge told him that he had just come from Canada where he recorded the Chopin concertos. That means that the recording dates on the recording (25 +26 May ) are not correct. It was funny to Jorge and Alun Francis when they found out that they had worked together before, and that both of them did not remember that indeed they did. If I am not mistaken, they performed Brahms 2. "When my friend Hans found out that the performance would be recorded (not digitally - which is rather strange, given the period) the recording team provided him with a copy immediately after the performance. After these two performances, Jorge made his way to Berlin for what was going to be his final public performance. "I have always felt happy to know that Jorge was able to finish his "orchestral" career with a piece most dear to him."

Thomas Sauer, a professional musician who is also on the music faculty of Vassar College (Poughkeepsie, New York) and of the Mannes School of Music (NYC), has generously offered some memories of his time with JB at Curtis. Thomas Sauer's personal website link The first thing to note is that I arrived at Curtis at age 16 with a limited repertoire, having played the piano for seven years. In other words, very green. In no way was I deserving of a place in Mr. Bolet's studio. I unquestionably needed a different sort of guidance than he was inclined to provide. All the same, I did my best to internalize his sound and approach to the instrument, storing information for later in my development, so to speak. In my first couple of years (1982-84), he demonstrated quite often, sometimes passages from the work I had brought to the lesson, other times playing an altogether different work. Needless to say, I had never heard playing like that at close range, nor have I heard it much during the past forty years (he resigned his position in 1986, at the end of what was my fourth year at Curtis). His primary concern with me was balancing the pianistic texture. I am quite sure that I frustrated him to no end in this respect, as I simply did not possess the pianistic tools to voice textures in the manner that he desired (though I understood clearly what he was after). His overarching concern with repertoire was that we study an enormous amount of it. He took a dim view of the competition scene in which a young pianist learned a couple of recital programs and concerti, then entered competition after competition with the same repertoire. He typically heard pieces only once in lessons, expecting us to move on to different repertoire for each cycle of lessons. This was very challenging for most of us, and resulted in a couple of students being asked to leave the studio during my time there. I can say, however, that he had a tremendous ear and memory, and was able to play pieces that he hadn't touched for decades after hearing them once or twice. Undoubtedly there are other pianists capable of this, but I have not met them. He often spoke of pianists from the past, Rachmaninov, Hofmann and Moiseiwitsch above all. He was not a lover of the Urtext tradition, which of course represented a significant departure from the Curtis of his predecessor, Rudolf Serkin. He spoke of the freedom and imagination of the older tradition, and encouraged us to encounter it via recordings and emulate it. He rarely discussed his touring with me. He did make clear that he had had many lean years, and seemed to enjoy the recognition that came to him post-1975, but I know next to nothing about any one concert. Re contacts in South America, I know that he was acquainted with Alberto Ginastera. One spring he encouraged my classmate Makoto Ueno and me to learn his first concerto over that summer. I found the prospect utterly overwhelming at that time, and failed to act (which was of course a mistake). He was quite formal with his students, learning what by today's standards would be a minimal amount about each individual, and in turn divulging little of his own personal life. He was never harsh with me, only rarely losing his patience (despite the abundant opportunities my playing offered him to do so). My sense is that he was a private person, dignified in bearing, and probably difficult to get to know. But again, we were students, and he observed boundaries. I would not be at all surprised to learn that he was a warm and loyal friend to many.

Jorge Bolet's agent at Columbia Artists from the 1960s onwards Nelly Walters died in October 2001 aged 100, after 70 years in the business; flowers and cards arrived in from celebrities across the world for her birthday in January. She was an integral part of the history of CAMI, retiring only in 1997. Born in Germany, she grew up in Dresden; in Berlin she worked for the Otto Mertens agency - his son André would later become her boss at CAMI in New York. She had begun already to develop her own network of clients in Europe and South America. Leading American managers came to Europe to engage clients from her. The political upheaval beginning in 1930, change to life. The Mertens agency was closed after Otto died of a heart attack. By 1933, Nelly and her mother had to leave Germany for their safety because they were Jewish. Nelly went to Prague where her friend, famed conductor, George Szell was music director of the Opera. She was soon in danger again as the Nazi tide swept towards Czechoslovakia. So she joined her mother, who had gone to her family in Vienna and continued her work there until Hitler invaded Austria in March 1938. Mother and daughter managed to get to Paris where she met Francis Poulenc and Virgil Thomson. She attended the Paris Opéra whenever she could, and even arrange the Scandinavian tour for the production of Debussy's Pelléas et Melisande. When the Germans marched into Paris in June 1940, she and her mother escaped and went into hiding in Marseille; picked up by soldiers, Nelly was thrown into a French concentration camp in the Pyrenees. Eventually, after the war mother and daughter arrived in New York on June 11, 1946, and she started at Columbia artist a few days later. Arthur Johnson, founder of the conglomerate, was president and Nelly became invaluable. André Martens came to CAMI to head a division and Nelly became his right-hand woman. After his death in 1963, she was promoted to a vice-presidency. Two snippets from the website: 4/5 December 1961 South Campus Auditorium, Waukesha, Wisconsin Rachmaninoff 3 [+ Samuel Barber's Die Natale, Debussy La Mer etc.] Waukesha Symphony Orchestra/Milton Weber Tex Compton seems to have written a letter to Nelly Walters, TLS (=typed signed letter) about reviews of this concert. (*I don't know why) There is among the Bolet papers at IPAM a letter from the United Nations, dated 27 July 1967 regarding the invitation from U Thant, the Burmese diplomat and the third secretary-general of the UN from 1961 to 1971 (the first non-Scandinavian to hold the position). During his second term (2 December, 1966), Thant was well known for publicly criticising American conduct in the Vietnam War. Dear Miss Walters (Vice President of Columbia Artists Management), We understand that Mr Bolet will travel from Midland, Texas on 21 October to NYC and will wish after the concert to fly to Edmonton, Alberta. We shall take responsibility for these travel costs and also for Mr Bolet's living expenses during his two days or so in NYC. George Moushon.

Brazilian/American pianist Francisco Rennó, a student of Bolet at Bloomington, Indiana, wrote to me c.10 years ago, and I've always enjoyed his letter. ‘I first met Jorge Bolet in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1974 at the Teresa Carreño International Piano Competition, where I was one of the competitors and he served as chairman of the jury. Bolet was one of two people who made it possible for me to leave behind the impoverished conditions of my native Brazil, come to the US to acquire a proper musical education and eventually become a citizen and settle here as a professional musician. As you can imagine, my gratitude and admiration for the man go beyond words. During the two years that I was in his class in Bloomington I had the privilege of having many hours of one-on-one conversations with him, not only in the studio but also in several dinner parties at his place and mine. He and his manager Tex were delightful hosts (and guests), liked to eat well and they both loved my wife's cooking. After a few glasses of wine and some paella the stories and jokes would start to flow, he would relax and come out of his usually very stern public persona, and we would go late into the night laughing, listening to music, and having the best of times. Hard to believe that was almost forty years ago...' ‘My years in Bloomington were the best years of my life and Jorge Bolet played a big part in it.’ Francisco Rennó, company pianist for Miami City Ballet. YouTube video interview

Makoto Ueno has generously sent me some memories of his time studying with Jorge Bolet at Curtis. Professor Makoto Ueno [b.1966, Muroran, Hokkaido, Japan] left his home town at the age of 16, to study in the West, first at Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he became one of the last six students of Jorge Bolet, then continued at Mozarteum Salzburg with Hans Leygraf. In addition to being a performing and recording artist, since 1996 he has also taught as a professor of piano at Kyoto University of Arts. A link to his website In April 1982, I went to Philadelphia for the first time, for the audition at the Curtis Institute. After the audition, several days later, I received a piece of paper from the Admissions Office. It was a paper from Bolet, a list of repertoire which I should study during the summer months, before the commencement of the school year. Ignorant as I was, and rather rebellious about everything, unfortunately I only partly followed his suggestions. Of the repertoire, I studied Chopin's Preludes, Études, the Barcarolle, the Nocturne, Beethoven, Bach. But I brought also pieces which interested me at the time and especially Schumann Op. 11, 16, 18 [Piano Sonata No. 1 in F♯ minor, Kreisleriana, Arabeske] and Debussy Études, Chopin Ballades, 3rd Sonata, Liszt. He did not mind, or at least he did not stop students from playing those pieces. Now that I am old enough, I know that I should have followed his suggestion (or an order) better, and should have had lessons with him on all these pieces. I studied all of them much later in my life. I think it was around 1984 or 85 that JB suggested Thomas Sauer (who had enrolled in the same year, and I think he received the same repertoire paper) and I study Ginastera's Concerto (No.1), even inviting us to listen to a recording of it at his apartment in Philadelphia. He thought this piece wonderful and recommended that we both study and accompany/work together to get to know the piece. He told us that it is important to have concerti in one's repertoire that not everyone plays. That is so correct. However again we did not do it… Tom did not like the piece, and I did not understand the piece. At least I bought the score and examined it. Bolet was right again. Working on concerti with a friend is the best way to get acquainted with the score. (The Ginastera is a great concerto, too.) In general he was not a teacher to teach uneducated young students (as I was). I think he was better at giving a final touch to already fully-developed students/artists. [With reference to lesson on Chopin's Ballade No. 3]: As you may have noticed, in his memory some of the Chopin scores and notes are based on the old Breitkopf complete edition from the late 19th Century. Paderewski's edition was fine, but he did not like an Urtext such as that of G.Henle, though he said he discussed and exchanged opinions with Dr. Ewald Zimmermann (1910–1998), the editor of Henle Chopin series back then. Mattheus Smits has written: Whenever Jorge played in the "Ruhrgebiet" in Germany [Ruhr area, a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia], Ewald Zimmermann showed up with his partner. After the concert we were often invited in their home. I still remember the address, Rektor-Horn-Straße, Rheinberg. There we all enjoyed talking about Ewald's work on the Chopin Urtext edition for Henle. In his house he kept copies of manuscripts and several old editions which were sent to him from institutions all over the world. Ewald always gave us free copies of the volumes which were recently published, and Jorge and I always were happy to get them. I know that Jorge always studied them carefully so that he was able to tell Ewald his opinion during the next visit to Rheinberg.

This is an extensive and detailed account of Jorge Bolet during his three visits to Japan in the years 1946, 1976 and 1988 but it also examines the wider picture of his career at these times. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. Use the contact box (unless you already have my email).

1 minute video I've just come across this film footage from Japanese TV of The Mikado in August 1946, Tokyo, Ernie Pyle Theatre. You get a tiny glimpse of the back of Jorge Bolet's head.

My thanks to Francis Crociata for recently sending me the original version of a Rachmaninoff anecdote concerning Josef Hofmann Rachmaninoff calling Hofmann the best pianist in New York. I think you were actually referring to a 1931 exchange of letters between SVR and JH first published in the Bertenssen and Leyda Rachmaninoff biography: In the meantime more compliments passed between the two greatest pianists. Josef Hofmann addressed a letter to “Premier Sergei Rachmaninoff”: “By “Premier” I mean the “Premier of Pianists,” in spite of my artistic attempt of Sunday last!” “After thinking over your offer to exchange hands with me, which you were so good as to suggest at the Zimbalist party, I accept. So I am to trade you my 20 fingers, according to your count, for your 10, which I still swear—despite the smaller number—are far superior. The only difficulty is how to close our deal—and in a painless fashion. Any suggestions?” January 19, 1931 My dear Mr. Hofmann: “There is a story that goes as follows: “Once upon a time in Paris there were a great many tailors. When one of them succeeded in renting a shop in a street devoid of tailors, he wrote on his sign: THE BEST TAILOR IN PARIS. The next tailor who opened a shop in the same street was forced to write on his sign: THE BEST TAILOR IN THE WHOLE WORLD. What was there left for the third tailor, who rented a shop between these two?—He wrote with becoming modesty: THE BEST TAILOR IN THIS STREET....” Your touching modesty, as expressed in your letter of January 15, as well as your incomparable professional knowledge, gives you full right to that last title: “You are the best in this street.”

It is not my intention to write a biography of Jorge Bolet, but I thought I would have a go at one chapter on his early years (1914-1927), especially as the material is rather scattered on this website, and confusing, too. This has enabled me to make connections with things I know now about his later life when I see what I have written on the page. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. UPDATE! When I say the material is rather scattered and confusing, I mean exactly that. I spotted that I claimed Jorge's father died in 1935 - yet he was apparently alive and well in 1944, during an interview with Jorge about him, becoming an American citizen. I may have mistranslated the Spanish (I haven't seen the article again since 2009, and the "Antonio" might refer to Jorge's eldest brother, not his father, but anyway, beware....

"It has been a long time since we have heard in Lima a pianist of Bolet's stature." 9 June 1982 Auditorio, Colegio Santa Ursula, Lima Mendessohn, Fantasy in F minor Op.28 Schumann, Fantasy in C major Op.17 Schubert/Liszt, 5 Lieder (Auf dem Wasser au singen, Der Müller under der Bach, Der Lindenbaum, Aufenthalt, Erlkönig) Liszt, Mephisto Waltz Jorge's only recital that year in Lima, Peru, a recital arranged in association with Baldwin Pianos (Los Zorzalas 140, San Isidro, Lima) El Comercio 13.6.1982 An appearance preceded by magnificent reviews. It was a program of tremendous difficulties, technical and musical, and the result was a delicious, enchanting and impressive evening. He is a pianist of great power, knowledge, elegance, and sobriety, to which is added an amazing technique. It can be said that it has been a long time since we have heard in Lima a pianist of Bolet's stature. The audience gave him a long and well deserved ovation. (Lucas)