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The first full biography of John Ogdon; a tortured genius and arguably the greatest British pianist of all time.
From the beginning of his professional career as a soloist John Ogdon was hailed as a musician of rare understanding and phenomenal technical gifts. Able to play and memorize just about any score at sight, tales of his impossible exploits at the keyboard are legion. Yet Ogdon was a man of extremes and it was this very extremity, while the source of much of his gift, that also led to appalling suffering.
Here was a man whose feelings were inexpressibly deep and often tormenting, and Ogdon's glory days, following his coveted Tchaikovsky prize in 1962, came to a sudden end in 1973 when he suffered a severe mental breakdown which led to his being certified insane and made patient of the Court of Protection. Over the course of several harrowing years Ogdon would spend large periods of time in and out of psychiatric wards and halfway houses. The drugs and treatments prescribed sometimes affected his coordination, and his reputation suffered as a result. Yet Ogdon's commitment to his art remained undimmed, and until the end he drew out performances of tremendous beauty and conviction from the depths of his ravaged heart.
In this illuminating biography, Charles Beauclerk explores the life of a brilliantly inspired artist, for whom music was both his cross and his salvation.
- Sales Rank: #1196220 in eBooks
- Published on: 2014-03-27
- Released on: 2014-03-27
- Format: Kindle eBook
About the Author
Charles Beauclerk is the author of a biography of his ancestor Nell Gwyn and a book on Shakespeare.
Most helpful customer reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful.
A surprisingly good read
By michael johnson
Charles Beauclerk writes compellingly about the complex life of John Ogdon, one of the twentieth century's great pianists. Although I knew Mr. Ogdon well, as his treating psychiatrist during his period in the United States, I learned so much more in the reading of the official biography. Not a reader of biographies, I was anticipating a tedious read--a familiar subject written with from the familiar angle most biographers take. Not so. I was gripped by the material and by the writing from the very first chapter. about John's rendering of the impossibly difficult work of Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji at Queen Elizabeth Hall on 14 July 1988. Reading it was as if I were hearing the music itself. Familiar with Beauclerk's work from Shakepeare's Lost Kingdom (Grove Press, NY, 2010), I found Piano Man to surpass his brilliant narrative. It reminded me of when I first read F. Scott Fitzgerald in college.
Beauclerk walks the line between focusing on John's illness and his genius in such a way that one is left with a balanced view, no small task, since both were described in high relief throughout the book. The unsung heroism of Mrs. Ogdon received proper recognition, finally, as one can see the magnitude of her responsibilities with John as well as her sacrifices of her own career.
I learned a great deal about music generally in reading this book, as Beauclerk demonstrates an authoritative voice in describing
the encyclopedic musicology of Ogdon. The research into Ogdon's background, education and musical culture which went into
the book is staggering, yet remains informative and engaging throughout. I must thank Richard Ogdon for asking Mr. Beauclerk to do this monumental and highly readable biography.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful.
JOHN OGDON: PHENOMENAL PIANIST, BRILLIANT YET DAMAGED MIND
By Sally E. Mosher
First, this is an important story, well told. Although a musician, I missed Ogdon's glory days, and so finding out about his phenomenal abilities was a new story for me. It is also the story of Ogdon the person, so it is a sometimes achingly sad story. First, Instant fame, then over booking of concert appearances; poorly understood and always mentally fragile, leading a life that would have challenged and exhausted a physically and mentally robust person. Ogdon could do things on the piano like sight reading orchestral scores and playing them with deep understanding and polish at first go that left other musicians gasping. Remembering everything he ever played, Ogdon was ready to sit down and perform it publicly. Finding out just before a performance that it isn't going to be Brahmas One as he had thought, he was both able and happy to do Brahms Two on the spot. There were devoted friends, but no one who knew what to do for him,. You read of problems turning into disasters, not even the professionals knowing how to deal with them, always financial pressure, and you think what a waste . John the person comes through as amazingly intelligent, not just in music, and fundamentally good. He could express music as few pianists could to his listeners, he just couldn't speak for himself.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful.
Og's life: complicated but well played
By aaron f tatum
So much depth in so many biographies is limited by tangible access to the subject in a variety of ways, many quite insurmountable. Robert Caro overcame the problem by massive research when he didn't have access to Lyndon Johnson. Norman Sherry had short access to Graham Greene in later years but largely re-traced his steps and found most of his acquaintances and friends so he was thorough in his preparation and delivery in his multi-volume bio. Ronald White produced a relatively pithy but expansive enough biography to touch the heart and mind of the reader without all the mundane details which can bog down such an endless subject as the life of Lincoln.
A reason for reading bios is simply to try to arrive at some sort of conclusion on the question of how genius is derived, expressed and lived. Beauclerk approaches a nearly perfect answer in documenting the penultimate pianist and reader of music notations in the Life of John Ogdon. He was able to do this so remarkable well because he achieves incisive insight into the man, his music and his mind thanks to a penetrating understanding, nearly complete access to Og's friends, family and acquaintances and, most importantly, a relationship from his early years as a child to John Ogdon including a longstanding friendship with his son. The insights are astounding, I believe, many by example, parable or recalled and reconstructed quotes. Most biographers play the quavers (eighth notes), efficiently Beauclerk hits hemidemisemiquavers (sixty-fourths).
While there were many raucous and even rebarbative moments in the Life, Og's a truly loveable, cuddly personality in spite of the mental challenges. He had to be exceptionally frustrating to those around him and even conniving and impossible, yet his character and personality (how he'd shake hands of each orchestra member, or remember a fan from two decades before--including the songs performed and the venue, or his photographic memory of entire pieces not played for two decades before) prevailed. When examining Lincoln, Sakharov, Nixon, one finds remarkable feats of memories of texts, equations or foreign policy details respectively wrapped in strong personalities even with some deficiencies of their own.
The origins of Baby Og's genius: the piano roll conditioned him to sight read complex pieces of music at age six, hooks the reader immediately. How fascinating to see a chubby six year old perform gymnastic feats with his tiny arms on a large piano to play Chopin. His later triumphs in Soviet Union, stages the world over and even in impromptu sessions simply because he loved to play hold the reader. As an amateur musician I was captivated; as a fan of playing prog rock and sometimes obscure songs (King Crimson's Night Watch or Premiata Forneria Marconi's fascinating tunes or the music of Focus) I could immediately identify with Og's obsession with Busoni or Sorabji. Then to listen to them as played by Og after my trip to the library or you tube and to hear his own compositions, I was completely blown away. Og was the composition and the piano--a magical merger.
In spite of all the turmoil of his mental states, it was clear also he and his wife have here a love story as presented so carefully revealed by Beauclerk. The relationships he had with managers, caretakers and booking agents is so well done and gives a superb look into all the sturm und drang one finds in a recording and touring artist of Og's stature. How he succeeded so much and so long was amazing. Og's life was a complicated, but well played song.
I don't want to spoil the read by playing too many notes so, this is not just a book for musicians, no matter how limited their talent, or simply those interested in the mental challenges Og owned. It is a book to read for examining the question of genius and how it's formed. It's a superlative tribute to a great, maybe the greatest pianist, of all classical music and the people around him as related by Beauclerk, a most perspicacious and accomplished writer.
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