Scott Ross

Scott Ross – born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on March 1, 1951 – was a harpsichordist best-known for his interpretations of works from the Baroque repertoire. He was first single performer to record the complete recording of Domenico Scarlatti’s 555 harpsichord sonatas. Scott Ross began learning to play the piano and organ at the age of six and, in 1964, after the death of his father, he and his mother moved to France. Passionate about musicology, he took organ lessons from Michel Chapuis at the Academy of Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume. He began his musical studies at the Conservatoire de Nice, eventually shifting his attention to the harpsichord. During Scott Ross’ time in Nice, France, his mother committed suicide when he was 19. Shortly after, he completed his studies in Nice and enrolled at the Conservatoire de Paris. In 1971, Scott Ross won the prestigious first place award at the Concours de Bruges. Signing with the Stil Discotèque label, he released his debut album, Bach: 4# Partita En Ré Majeur / Offrande Musicale / Prélude, Fugue Et Allegro En Mi Bémol Majeur, in 1973. He secured a teaching job at the Faculty of Music at the Université Laval in Quebec, Canada, and held that position until 1986. While teaching, he continued to perform live and record. Some of his most celebrated releases include the complete keyboard works of François Couperin, which he issued in separate volumes in 1977 and 1978. Perhaps his most well-known release was Scarlatti: Complete Keyboard Works, a 34 CD box set containing composer Domenico Scarlatti's 555 Sonatas that Scott Ross recorded between 1984-1985. Scott Ross died on June 13, 1989, a victim of AIDS. He was 38 years old.