Andre Watts

André Watts was born 1946. At ten, Watts performed the Mendelssohn: G minor concerto with the Robin Hood Dell Orchestra and at fourteen, the César Franck Symphonic Variations, again with the Philadelphia Orchestra. At sixteen, he auditioned at Carnegie Recital Hall. He played the Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 1, E-flat at Lincoln Center with the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Leonard Bernstein. A Young People's Concert was taped and shown on CBS, January 15, 1963, on which Bernstein introduced his pianist to the national television audience. Three weeks later Bernstein asked Watts to fill in for ailing Glenn Gould, the scheduled soloist for the New York Philharmonic regular subscription concert January 1, 1963. Watts again played the E flat Concerto, making international headlines and earning a contract with Columbia Records. When he had sounded his final cadenza, the whole orchestra joined the audience in a standing ovation. Even the violinists put down their bows and applauded him. Watts recorded the album The Exciting Debut of Andre Watts. His performance of the Liszt concerto with Bernstein and the N.Y. Philharmonic has been issued on CD by Sony Classical.