Pierre Fournier

Acclaimed for the rich sounds that he drew from the cello, French classical musician Pierre Fournier ranked with Mstislav Rostropovich in the esteem of most critics as the finest cellists of the 20th century. Before he died at the age of 79 in 1986 he performed and recorded all the great romantic and Baroque masters but also introduced concertos and sonatas by composers such as Frank Martin, Bohuslav Martinu, Francis Poulenc, Albert Roussel and Jean Martinon.

During his career Fournier was nominated for four Grammy Awards including Best Classical Performance Concerto or Instrumental Soloist. He won for Best Chamber Music Performance for Brahms: Trios (Complete)/Schumann: Trio No. 1 in D Minor (1974) and Schubert: Trios Nos. 1 in B Flat, Op. 99 and 2 in E Flat, Op. 100 (Piano Trios) (1975).

Born in Paris (June 24, 1906) to a military family, his early study of the piano came to an end when a bout of polio caused him to lose agility in his feet and he decided to pick up the cello. He graduated from the Paris Conservatory at the age of 17 and spent the second half of the 1920s with the Krettly Quartet. He taught at the École Normale de Musique and the Paris Conservatoire from 1937 to 1949 and was criticised for performing on the Nazi controlled Radio-Paris during World War II. In the 1950s, he toured South America and in 1956 settled in Switzerland. He continued to tour internationally and gave a recital at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall when he was 78.