Remembering Alex Abercrombie
It gives me great sadness to report the death of pianist and composer Alexander Abercrombie (1949-2023); I have only just now heard this news although he passed away in April last year.
A one-time student of Olivier Messiaen and his wife Yvonne Loriod, Alex’s pianistic career was launched in the early 1970s at a time when his specialism was challenging contemporary scores including those of Xenakis, Finnissy and Ferneyhough. Later in life he switched from music to become a professor of mathematics (in which he was self-taught), although he continued to make typeset editions of scores including several major works by Sorabji; in addition to Piano Quintet No.2, Toccata Seconda (recently recorded by Abel Sánchez-Aguilera), Piano Sonata No.5: Opus Archimagicum (whose recording by Tellef Johnson is shortly due for release), Sequentia Cyclica super Dies Iræ (recorded by Jonathan Powell) and Il Grido del Gallino d’Oro (premièred by Jonathan Powell), and the vast majority of the 100 Transcendental Studies (the entire cycle recorded by Fredrik Ullén), he collaborated with Abel Sánchez-Aguilera on the edition of Piano Symphony No.0 and with several editors on Concerto per suonare da me solo as well as editing and completing the Passacaglia. He also prepared editions of my own piano works Cabaraphrase (premièred by Jørgen Hald Nielsen) and Sequentia Claviensis (premièred by Jonathan Powell).
Alex married mezzo-soprano Barbara Dix whom he met at Glyndebourne while working as a répétiteur. They ran the Independent Academy of Music and Drama in Southport, Lancashire for 30 years. In 1987 they founded the Mozart Singing Competition (formerly National Mozart Competition, for singers and pianists), whose patron is Dame Kiri te Kanawa.
The value of Alex’s contributions to the Sorabji legacy cannot be overestimated; his excellent editions span not far short of 35 hours’ worth of music.