Nicholas Angelich was only 51 years old. On April 18, this renowned pianist, world famous in classical music, died following a long respiratory illness that he tried to fight until the end. American by birth, it is however on French soil, in Paris where he resided for many years, that the funeral of Nicholas Angelich took place in the Saint-Roch church in the 1st arrondissement this Tuesday, April 26. Among the witnesses of these heartbreaking farewells were Marc Voinchet, director of France Musique, Renaud Capuçon who played inside the church, the Minister of Culture Roselyne Bachelot, not far from the First Lady Brigitte Macron accompanied by José Pietroboni, head of protocol at the Elysée. Just two days after her husband Emmanuel Macron won the presidential election, reality quickly caught up with the elegant ex-teacher, dressed head to toe in black for such a sad occasion.
The disappearance of Nicholas Angelich has caused a wave of tributes on the Web. Starting with those of Renaud Capuçon, violinist and his wife Laurence Ferrari: “Nicholas, Like your sound, you were bright and tender at the same time. You were an extraordinary pianist, a sensitive, faithful, generous friend. Your sudden departure leaves us with a great void. I’ll never play a Brahms note again without being near you.” wrote the musician on Twitter. The journalist underlined her “immense sadness” and the talent of “lord of the piano“, one of them “dear friend“.
April 18, 2022 will definitely be a black day for the world of classical music. If that day, Nicholas Angelich died of the consequences of his respiratory disease – he had undergone a transplant which his body unfortunately rejected -, two other great names in music also bowed out: Radu Lupu, 76-year-old Romanian pianist , who died of a long illness in Switzerland and Harrison Birtwistle died aged 87 at his home in England.