The prolific British composer and celebrated pianist has passed away aged 75.

The British composer and pianist John McCabe, CBE has died, aged 75. His death was confirmed by a statement from his publishers Novello and Company saying that Mr McCabe had “passed away peacefully after a long illness.” 

In addition to his prolific output of music, McCabe was celebrated for his performances and recordings of piano music, and in particular his realisations of Haydn’s sonatas are considered some of the most definitive interpretations of those works. His mid-70’s recording of the complete Haydn piano sonatas was described by Gramophone magazine as “one of the great recorded monuments of the keyboard repertoire.”

Born near Liverpool in 1939, McCabe was a precocious talent, composing 13 symphonies before the age of 11, although in later life he would supress these early pieces. Like fellow composers Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Sir Harrison Birtwistle, McCabe studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music (now the Royal Northern College of Music), however his talents for writing music were initially eclipsed by his skills as a pianist. While a small number of pieces gained McCabe some noterity as a composer, such as his Concerto for...