Ramon Khalona <[log in to unmask]> asked about 'Gus Anievas' recording of
the Rachmaninov Preludes.

They appeared about 2-3 years ago in the EMI Forte (2fer) series (with a
Chopin sonata and the Liszt b minor) on CZS 569527-2.

My wife and I have been very close friends of 'Gus & Carol Anievas, since
the late 60s when they lived in Brussels.  Following the Queen Elizabeth
Piano Competition c.1967, and his EMI signing, they decided to live in
Belgium where, at the time, I was i/c EMI's classical operations.  This,
of course, was how we met.  At that time he had a highly successful
European career - indeed his LP recording of the Rach.2/Paganini Vars.
(HMV/EMI ASD2361) was one of EMI's best sellers for nearly 20 years.

Because of all this I felt rather constrained to answer the posting from
Joel Hill but I forwarded the posting to 'Gus and I am sure he'll be
delighted that there are those who still remember him.  I expect to hear
from him at any moment and if there is anything to pass on to the list I
will do so.

As I think I may have pointed out in earlier postings 'Gus left Brussels
some 20+ years ago to take up the position of chairman of the piano
department at Brooklyn College (UNY) and from which he retired about 18
months ago.  I know he is doing the occasional concert (Newport Festival
last year and this) and last summer I had him play to a 70-strong private
audience in a beautiful Dutch-owned art gallery atop a mountain in the
Sierra Bernia south of here.  It was a marvellous and very moving
experience from which I can assure North America listers that he is
playing better than ever.

It was odd, too, that Gus' producer at EMI was the Indian Suvi Raj Grubb
who, thanks to a strong recommendation from Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos, came
to retire over the hill from here at Moraira so that I spent many many
evenings listening to his stories of his time first as Walter Legge's
assistant and of recording Karajan ("who is that black man over there" -
one of Suvi's amusing stories of his first encounter with HvK), Klemperer,
du Pre, Barenboim, Previn, Slava, Ashkenazy, Zukerman, Perlman etc...
(Suvi & I had been in EMI together during many years).  One of the last
evenings we spent with them was a marvellous dinner with Slava in Valencia.
And, yes, we all got well and truly hugged!

Suvi and his wife returned to India in 1995 and he died in Poona just
before Xmas.  Sadly he had found the Spanish very racist and could stand
it no longer and wanted to go home.  He was a christian from Madras,
was entirely self taught in music and was very black; his wife was a
pathologist at the Royal Free Hospital in London.  They made quite a
pair - as long as you kept off politics, they were both more than pink!!
Whenever we went to a restaurant together everyone stopped talking - I
found it rather pathetic but I know how he must have felt.  At his 70th
birthday dinner in his home I produced telexes from a number of his
artists incl.  Janet Baker, Fi-Di, Barenboim, Previn, Slava and, of
course, Anievas.

Gus' wife, Carol, is also a Juilliard graduate.  Occasionally, after his
recitals in years gone by, she would join him in a wicked encore of the
Rosenkavalier Waltzes (4-hands).

And, yes, he is a great guy!

John G. Deacon
Home page: www.ctv.es/USERS/j.deacon