Charles Rosen Dead: Renowned Pianist and Author Dies at 85

Posted on Dec 12th 2012 10:28AM by Caitlin White
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Erich Auerbach, Getty Images

Charles Rosen, renowned pianist and author, died Sunday night in New York City's Mount Sinai Hospital at the age of 85. Close friend Henri Zerner confirmed to the New York Times that the he died from cancer.

Rosed collaborated with some of the greatest composers of the 20th century, including Elliott Carter, Milton Babbitt and many others. Born and raised in New York, the composer became a fixture at the 92nd St. Y, giving lectures and recitals.

Rosen took his first piano lesson at age 4 and proceeded to study at Julliard from ages 7 to 11. At 11, he began private lessons with pianist Moriz Rosenthal, who was a pupil of Liszt. Rosen later went on to study at Princeton, where he took few music classes while earning bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees in French Literature.

Aside from his musicianship, Rosen was also an esteemed author. His book The Classical Style won a National Book Award for its analysis of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven.

Rosen was recently honored for his work when President Obama awarded him a National Arts and Humanities Medal. Elected as a candidate for 2011, the ceremony took place earlier this year at the White House.

"I was too proud to take courses in music," he told an interviewer at the event. "I don't mean to sound snotty but it's true. I knew more about music than most of the music graduate students."

According to the Times, Rosen leaves no immediate survivors.

See Charles Rosen in "Great Conversations in Music: The Composers" Video

Musicians Who Have Passed in 2012