Gerard Willems AM (born Gerardus Maria Willems; 19 August 1946) is a Dutch-

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n classical pianist and teacher. He was the first Australian pianist to record the complete series of 32 piano sonatas by

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

. He also recorded Beethoven's five piano concertos, the '' Diabelli Variations'', C minor variations, Andante favori, Für Elise and the 3 Electoral "Kurfürstensonaten" sonatas as well as a reconstructed "Fantasy Sonata in D". These recordings feature the Australian designed and manufactured Stuart & Sons piano. This series of recordings constitutes the largest classical music recording project ever undertaken in Australia, and Willems became the best selling classical artist in Australia's recording history.

Biography

Willems was born and grew up in

Tilburg Tilburg () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands, in the southern Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. With a population of 22 ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. He was named after his maternal grandfather, a church organist, composer and piano builder. He received a scholarship from the Brabant Conservatorium, but the Soviet invasion of Hungary in 1956 caused his parents, fearful of a

domino effect A domino effect is the cumulative effect produced when one event sets off a series of similar or related events, a form of chain reaction. The term is an analogy to a falling row of dominoes. It typically refers to a linked sequence of events ...

, to migrate to

when he was 12, in 1958. Until he was 17, they lived in a migrant camp near

Wollongong Wollongong ( ; Dharawal: ''Woolyungah'') is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near water' or 'sound ...

; his father died in the camp. He entered the

Sydney Conservatorium of Music The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (SCM) — formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music, and known by the moniker "The Con" — is the music school of the University of Sydney. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious music ...

, studying under Gordon Watson. After graduation, he was called up for

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

, managing to convince the army he was best suited as a musician, and he played the clarinet in army bands. Willems was employed as the touring pianist for the

Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur an ...

, and travelled on tours with dancers such as

Margot Fonteyn Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, DBE ( Hookham; 18 May 191921 February 1991), known by the stage name Margot Fonteyn (), was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with th ...

Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...

and

Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; ; born January 27, 1948) is a Latvian and American dancer, choreographer, and actor. He was the preeminent male ...

. He won the Queen Victoria Piano Competition, and later studied under Greville Rothon (assistant to

Claudio Arrau Claudio Arrau León (; February 6, 1903June 9, 1991) was a Chilean and American pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning the baroque music, baroque to 20th-century classical music, 20th-century composers, especially B ...

) in Munich. He made debuts in London 1974, Munich 1977 and Amsterdam 1978. He returned to Sydney in 1981 and has taught as senior lecturer, and later chair of the Keyboard Unit, at the Sydney Conservatorium 1981–2008 and is currently an associate professor at Sydney University. He founded the piano trio Mozartrois, and with them recorded the complete

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

piano trios, as part of the bicentenary of Mozart's death in 1991. He has appeared in lieder recitals and chamber music concerts. In 1996, former television producer Brendan Ward persuaded Willems to record Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas. These recordings (12 CDs) were released by the ABC in 3 volumes in 1998, 1999 and 2000. They won successive

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

, in

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

and

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, the first time a pianist won the Classical section of the Awards. In 2001, he won the inaugural Queen Elizabeth II Australian Musical Scholarship. He toured

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and held the Hephzibah Menuhin Chair in Piano as visiting professor at the Rubin Academy in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. His recordings of the five Beethoven piano concertos were released in 2003. These featured Sinfonia Australis under the conductor Antony Walker. The Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor" was also released on DVD in 2004, and won the International DVD Association Award for Music Excellence in 2005. It is now on YouTube. In 2006, the year of Mozart's 250th birthday, Willems recorded a CD of Mozart favourites for the ABC, including the ''Variations on the Dutch National Anthem''. In 2010 Willems recorded Beethoven's Diabelli Variations. In 2013, after he recorded Beethoven's C minor variations, Andante favori, Für Elise, the 3 Electoral "Kurfürstensonaten" sonatas and the reconstructed "Fantasy Sonata in D", the ABC released all the Willems Beethoven recordings in a 14-CD box-set "The Beethoven-Willems Collection". In 2015, Willems recorded "Morning Mood", a 2-CD set of Edvard Grieg's piano music for the ABC, again using the Stuart Piano.

Personal life

Willems has three children. Marcel and Louise with Judy Willems and Clara Doroty Eleonore Frey-Willems with Eva Frey. He lives with his second wife Eva Frey in Amsterdam.

Discography

Awards and nominations

In 2001 Willems was named the inaugural Queen Elizabeth II Music Scholar by the

Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust (AETT) is an Australian theatre and performing arts company based in Sydney established in 1954. It is today especially known for its music scholarship program. History The Australian Elizabethan Theatre ...

. Also in 2003 he was awarded a

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or g ...

for services to music and in 2012 he was appointed a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AM).

ARIA Music Awards

The

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

, ''Piano: Beethoven Sonatas Volume 1'' , rowspan="3" , Best Classical Album , , rowspan="3" , ARIA Award previous winners. , - ,

, ''Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas'' , , - ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, ''Beethoven Complete Piano Concertos'' (with Sinfonia Australis) , , -

References

External links

The Beethoven Obsession interview
(ABC Classical) {{DEFAULTSORT:Willems, Gerard 1946 births ARIA Award winners Living people Australian classical pianists Male classical pianists Dutch emigrants to Australia Members of the Order of Australia Musicians from Tilburg Piano educators Sydney Conservatorium of Music alumni Academic staff of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music 21st-century classical pianists 21st-century Australian male musicians 21st-century Australian musicians