Gottschalk, Louis Moreau (1829-1869)

Gottschalk, Louis Moreau

COMPOSER, PIANIST (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA)

BORN 8 May 1829, New Orleans, Louisiana - DIED 18 Dec 1869, Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro
CAUSE OF DEATH possible overdose of quinine in combination with malaria
GRAVE LOCATION New York City, New York: Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn (Section M/N, Lot 19581)

Louis Moreau Gottschalk was the son of a Jewish businessman from England and a Creole mother from New Orleans, where he grew up. He started to play the piano early and in 1840 he first performed in public.

When he was thirteen years old he went to Europe, but he was refused at the Conservatory in Paris bacause he was American. He studied privately with Charles Hallé, Camille-Marie Stamaty and Pierre Maleden. Connections of his family gradually helped him to a position in musical circles in Paris. He wrote romantic works for the piano and performed them himself. Chopin praised him as a pianist.

Gottschalk had mixed feelings about the music scene in Europe. He remarked that Liszt was 'devoured by a thirst for glory' and that many of his followers copied his long hair but didn't have his talent. He returned to the USA in 1853, but in 1854 he was in Cuba and he travelled in South America during the next years. His reputation grew and he became America's most famous pianist.

During the Civil War he supported the Union. In 1865 a scandal broke out after he had an affair with a student at the Oakland Female Seminary in California. He left the USA and toured South America. During a concert in Rio de Janeiro on 24 Nov 1869 he broke down from malaria. Three weeks later he died in a hotel in Tijuca. In 1870 his body was transported back to the USA and buried at Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn.

Related persons
• was pupil of Hallé, Charles
• had work performed by Jaëll, Alfred
• was pupil of Stamaty, Camille-Marie

Images
The grave of Louis Moreau Gottschalk at the Greenwood Cemetery, New York City. Picture by Androom (15 Apr 2010)	The grave of Louis Moreau Gottschalk at the Greenwood Cemetery, New York City. Picture by Androom (15 Apr 2010)