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John Ogdon (January 27, 1937 – August 1, 1989) was a pianist and composer born in Mansfield Woodhouse, Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom.
Ogdon attended Manchester Grammar School, before studying at the Royal Manchester College of Music (the predecesor of the RNCM) between 1953 and 1957. His tutors there included Iso Elinson and Gordon Green. After college, he spent six weeks with Egon Petri receiving tuition in Basle.
He gained international fame by winning the International Piano Competition in memory of Liszt Ferenc in Budapest in 1961, and first prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1962, along with Vladimir Ashkenazy.
John Ogdon attempted monumental tasks such as a complete recording of Rachmaninov's works for piano, but it was never released.
His compositions include piano works, chamber music, a string quartet and a piano concerto. A planned symphony based on the works of Herman Melville was never completed.
In 1973, Ogdon experienced a severe breakdown. His illness was never fully diagnosed, but was thought to be schizophrenia (possibly inherited from his father) or manic depression. Ogdon withdrew from the concert platform, and spent time in hospital, where his treatments included a course of electric shock therapy.
He returned to performing in public around 1980, and in 1988 released a well-received four-disc recording of Sorabji's 'Opus clavicembalisticum', shortly before he died of pneumonia, brought on by undiagnosed diabetes.
The BBC made a film about his life titled Virtuoso, based on his biography, written by his wife and fellow-pianist, Brenda Lucas Ogdon. John Ogdon was played by Alfred Molina, who won a Best Actor award from the Royal Television Society for his performance.
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