Frederic A. Rzewski *60

Frederic died June 26, 2021, of a heart attack in Montiano, Italy. He was 83.

A “daredevil pianist” and iconoclastic composer, Frederic was born in Westfield, Mass., April 13, 1938. Studying with composers Randall Thompson and Walter Piston, he graduated from Harvard in 1958. He earned a master’s degree in 1960 from Princeton. His teachers were Roger Sessions and Milton Babbitt *92.

He was best known for a set of piano variations on a Chilean protest song, The People United Will Never Be Defeated, which became an anthem of resistance after the overthrow of Salvador Allende in 1973. Described as a mixture of Franz Liszt and Niagara Falls, the piece was performed at Kennedy Center concerts to celebrate the U.S. Bicentennial. It was part of a three-CD set named Gramophone’s recording of the year in 2016.

Another celebrated work was Coming Together, a monodrama for actor and ensemble created after the uprising at New York’s Attica State Prison.

From 1977 until his death, Frederic taught composition at the Royal Conservatory in Liege, Belgium, and conducted master classes at universities throughout Europe and the United States.

He is survived by his wife, Nicole Abbeloos; his companion Françoise Walot; six children; and five grandchildren.

Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA.