The team at Sounds Like GGS! would like to acknowledge the three sad losses for The Glenn Gould School: Leon Fleisher, Marietta Orlov, and Victor Danchenko.
On August 2, we lost our oldest and beloved connection to the school, the irreplaceable American pianist Leon Fleisher. This towering figure of the piano world had given master classes to Royal Conservatory of Music students for more than three decades, classes that built GGS from its very first days. As our Ihnatowycz Chair in Piano, Mr. Fleisher travelled to Toronto multiple times a year from his Baltimore home to listen to our piano students in Mazzoleni Hall, conduct the RCO in Koerner Hall, and share his golden insights that always enlightened the core message of the music. We celebrate all he shared with us but mourn this great loss. Read more about Mr. Fleisher Read more about Mr. Fleisher here.
On November 7, we lost Romanian pianist Marietta Orlov who taught at both GGS and The Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy for Young Artists. Her legacy of so many gifted pianists, now living around the world, was recognized just days before her death by a phone call from the Governor General’s office, telling her that she had been awarded the Order of Canada “for her lifelong contributions as a piano pedagogue and for her enduring devotion to the next generation of Canadian musicians.” There’s more about Marietta Orlov There’s more about Marietta Orlov ere.
Eleven days later, on November 18, renowned Russian violinist Victor Danchenko passed away. A student of the great David Oistrakh, he began teaching at the RCM in 1977, moved on to Curtis and Peabody, then returned in 2013 to continue inspiring students at both GGS and Taylor Academy, feeling fondly back at home. Read more about Victor Danchenko’s wide-ranging influence Read more about Victor Danchenko’s wide-ranging influence ere and listen to a moving musical tribute to him by RCO strings. There’s also a beautiful 90-minute tribute video 90-minute tribute video ere, featuring endearing photographs and heartfelt solo performances by many of his students including GGS alums June Lee (ADP ’20), Alexis Meschter (PDP ’18), Nakwon Choi (ADP ’20), Yu Kai Sun (BMus ’20), and Taylor Academy’s Vivian Kukiel. Don’t miss the GGS/Taylor Academy student tribute at 1:19:30 featuring more familiar faces.
