Foster Sidney

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Foster Sidney

Foster, Sidney, esteemed American pianist and pedagogue; b. Florence, S.C., May 23, 1917; d. Boston, Feb. 7, 1977. He began piano training as a child with Walter Goldstein in New Orleans, and at the age of 10 was admitted to the Curtis Inst. of Music in Philadelphia, where he studied with Vengerova and Saperton and took his diploma in 1938. In 1940 he won the 1st

Leventritt Foundation Award, which entitled him to an appearance as soloist with the N.Y. Phil, in Beethoven’s 3rd Piano Concerto on March 16, 1941. This was the beginning of a fine international career. In 1964 he played 16 concerts in Russia. He taught piano at Fla. State Univ. (1949–51); from 1952 to 1977 he was on the piano faculty of Ind. Univ. at Bloomington.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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