Wadsworth, Charles (William)

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Wadsworth, Charles (William)

Wadsworth, Charles (William), American pianist and harpsichordist; b. Barnesville, Ga., May 21, 1929. He studied piano with Tureck and conducting with Morel at the Juilliard School of Music in N.Y. (B.S., 1951; M.S., 1952); he also studied the French song repertoire with Bernac in Paris and German Heder with Zallinger in Munich. In 1960 Menotti invited him to organize the Chamber Music Concerts at the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy; he was its director and pianist for 20 years. In 1969 he helped to found the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in N.Y., and was its artistic director until 1989; in 1977 he also created the chamber music series for the Charleston, S.C., Spoleto Festival U.S.A. In addition to numerous appearances as a pianist and harpsichordist with various ensembles, he appeared in performances with many noted artists of the day, including Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Beverly Sills, Hermann Prey, and Shirley Verrett.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire