| American composer and pianist,
whose use of the rhythms and melodic styles of Caribbean and Creole folk
music long antedated their use by other composers. Born in New Orleans,
La., Gottschalk received a musical education in Paris and toured as a pianist
in Europe. His father's death in 1854 forced him to support his family,
and he began concertizing on an exhausting schedule interrupted by more
relaxed periods in the Caribbean (1856-62) and Latin America (1865-69).
During his travels, he became the first American pianist to attain international
fame as a virtuoso. Monetary need also prompted him to compose a number
of sentimental, highly marketable piano pieces, such as the enormously popular
"The Last Hope" (1854) and "The Dying Poet" (1863-64).
The most significant among his more than 100 compositions, however, are
those influenced by black, Latin, and Creole folk music, such as the piano
pieces "La Bamboula" (1844-45; the name of a dance) and "Le
Banjo" (1855). In addition to piano music, his works include the symphonic
poems La nuit des tropiques (Night in the Tropics, 1858-59) and Montevideo:
Grand Marcha Solemne (1868); the Grande tarantelle (1868), for orchestra;
and several cantatas. His diary was posthumously published as Notes of a
Pianist (1881). |