Terence Judd (3 October 1957between 16 and 23 December 1979) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

Career

Terence Judd was born in 1957 to

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

parents, Anthony and Gloria Judd. In 1967, aged 10, he won the National Junior Pianoforte Competition, and came to the attention of

Eileen Joyce Eileen Alannah Joyce CMG (1908–1991) was an Australian pianist whose career spanned more than 30 years. She lived in England in her adult years. Her recordings made her popular in the 1930s and 1940s, particularly during World War II. At h ...

, who supported and encouraged him. He also studied with

Maria Curcio Maria Curcio (27 August 1918 or 191930 March 2009) was an Italian classical pianist who became a sought-after teacher. Her students included Barry Douglas, Ignat Solzhenitsyn, Martha Argerich, Evelyne Brancart, Radu Lupu, Dame Mitsuko Uchida, ...

, the last and favourite pupil of

Artur Schnabel Artur Schnabel (17 April 1882 – 15 August 1951) was an Austrian-born classical pianist, composer and Pedagogy, pedagogue. Schnabel was known for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding pure technical bravura. Among the 20th ...

. In London he also studied with Ezra Rachlin (1915–1995). Known particularly for his championship of virtuosic romantic works, above all the music of

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

, he brought a characteristic exuberance and clarity of expression to his performances; and his recordings bear witness to that. His renditions of

Alberto Ginastera Alberto Evaristo Ginastera (; April 11, 1916June 25, 1983) was an Argentine composer of classical music. He is considered to be one of the most important 20th-century classical music, 20th-century classical composers of the Americas. Biography G ...

's Piano Sonata No. 1 and

Samuel Barber Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer, pianist, conductor (music), conductor, baritone, and music educator, and one of the most celebrated composers of the mid-20th century. Principally influenced ...

's Piano Sonata in E minor are exemplary for other pianists, and his memorable performances of

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

's Piano Concerto No. 1 and

Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

's Piano Concerto No. 3, which he played back-to-back in the finals of the 1978

Tchaikovsky Competition The International Tchaikovsky Competition is a classical music competition held every four years in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia, for pianists, violinists, and cellists between 16 and 32 years of age and singers between 19 and 32 years of ...

, are among the most exciting of these well-known virtuosic works. He was awarded joint 4th Prize, with Boris Petrov.

Death

Shortly before he was due to embark on a six-concert tour of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, Judd left his parents'

Brondesbury Park Brondesbury Park is a suburb and electoral ward in the London Borough of Brent, centred on Brondesbury Park railway station and the street, an avenue, which shares its name. The area has a number of open spaces, primarily Queen's Park and Tiv ...

home in north-west London after Sunday lunch on 16 December 1979, telling them he was going for a walk. A week later, on 23 December, his body was found washed up on the beach at the foot of

Beachy Head Beachy Head is a Chalk Group, chalk headland in East Sussex, England. It is situated close to Eastbourne, East Sussex, Eastbourne, immediately east of the Seven Sisters, Sussex, Seven Sisters. Beachy Head is located within the administrative ar ...

.''The Day'' 28 December 1979, New london, Connecticut, USA. There was a one-way train ticket in his pocket, which was seen as evidence he had not intended returning."Remembering Terence: tragedy of a prodigy", Classic fm, February 2009
At the coroner's inquest, his general practitioner testified that he had treated Judd for depression in February 1979. Earlier in his life, Judd had suffered a nervous breakdown and spent several months at a clinic in north London, where he received ECT. The coroner delivered an open verdict,The Glasgow Herald, 25 January 1980
/ref> but it is generally accepted that Judd took his own life. His family scattered his ashes in Hawaii, a place he had long desired to visit. The Terence Judd Award is given in his honour.

Selected discography

Judd produced a number of recordings for

Chandos Records Chandos Records is a British independent classical music recording company based in Colchester. It was founded in 1979 by Brian Couzens.
Includes the Ginastera and Barber sonatas mentioned above as well as Liszt, Dmitri Shostakovich, Shostakovich and

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

.

Predominantly Liszt (including the Sonata in B minor (Liszt), Sonata in B minor) as well as some Chopin.

A more classical selection, with Johann Sebastian Bach, Bach, Scarlatti and

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

as well as some romantic works.

The concertos mentioned above, recorded in the Tchaikovsky Competition.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Judd, Terence 1957 births 1979 suicides 1979 deaths English male classical pianists Prize-winners of the International Tchaikovsky Competition 20th-century English classical pianists 20th-century English musicians Pupils of Maria Curcio 20th-century English male musicians Suicides by drowning in England