# Stell Andersen > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Stell_Andersen > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Stell_Andersen.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stell_Andersen > Source revision: 1352146533 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Infobox person | name = Stell Andersen | image = StellAndersen1929.png | alt = Stell Andersen, from a 1929 publication | birth_name = Cora Stell Andersen | birth_date = 1897 | birth_place = Linn Grove, Iowa, U.S. | death_date = 1989 | occupation = Pianist }} '''Cora Stell Andersen''' (1897–1989), also known as '''Cora Andersen''', was an international concert pianist who toured during the 1920s with [Silvio Scionti](/source/Silvio_Scionti) performing [piano duos](/source/piano_duet). In the 1930s and 1940s, she toured as a solo pianist and was the only American soloist invited to perform at the [1937 Paris Exposition](/source/Exposition_Internationale_des_Arts_et_Techniques_dans_la_Vie_Moderne). ==Early life and education== Cora Stell Andersen was born in [Linn Grove, Iowa](/source/Linn_Grove%2C_Iowa), and was of Norwegian descent. She was known as Cora Andersen until 1918, when she began using her middle name instead. She began to study the piano early and eventually went to Chicago to study with [Silvio Scionti](/source/Silvio_Scionti) at the [American Conservatory of Music](/source/American_Conservatory_of_Music) in Chicago. After graduating in 1916, she went to New York for further study with [Josef Lhévinne](/source/Josef_Lh%C3%A9vinne) and [Isidor Philipp](/source/Isidor_Philipp). == Musical career == Shortly thereafter, Andersen went on a concert tour with Scionti playing music for two pianos. Praised by critics for their imaginative and polished playing, they continued to tour together through the 1920s. Though they then stopped playing together regularly, they made occasional appearances together into the early 1950s. In 1922, Andersen made her solo debut in New York at [Carnegie Hall](/source/Carnegie_Hall). She toured the United States and Europe throughout the 1930s and 1940s, playing in France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Belgium. In 1937, she was the only American soloist who was invited to perform at the [Paris Exposition](/source/Exposition_Internationale_des_Arts_et_Techniques_dans_la_Vie_Moderne). She went on to perform for the [Duke](/source/Duke_of_Windsor) and [Duchess](/source/Wallis_Simpson) of Windsor. In 1939, she became the first musician invited to perform on a newly installed piano in the East Room of the White House. Andersen's repertoire was mostly [classical](/source/Classical_music) and [Romantic](/source/Romantic_music), including such composers as [Mozart](/source/Mozart), [Beethoven](/source/Beethoven), [Chopin](/source/Chopin), [Brahms](/source/Brahms), [Schumann](/source/Robert_Schumann), [Liszt](/source/Liszt), [Grieg](/source/Grieg), [Scriabin](/source/Scriabin), [Rachmaninoff](/source/Rachmaninoff), [Saint-Saens](/source/Saint-Saens), and [Ives](/source/Charles_Ives). In 1939, she premiered composer [Darius Milhaud](/source/Darius_Milhaud)'s ''Fantaisie pastorale for piano and orchestra'', Op. 188 with Milhaud conducting. In 1952, she would record this piece and several others with conductor [Jonathan Sternberg](/source/Jonathan_Sternberg). Some were released immediately on a disc by Oceanic, while others were not released for another 30 years. Andersen was known for bringing dignity and flawless execution to her playing, but some critics found her style lacking in excitement and her tempi too free. She continued touring into the 1960s and died in 1989. ==Personal life== Andersen's companion for many years was the author [Esther Morgan McCullough](/source/Esther_Morgan_McCullough), daughter of former Vermont governor [John G. McCullough](/source/John_G._McCullough). In 1936, Andersen saw an exhibition of paintings by [Harriet Blackstone](/source/Harriet_Blackstone) at the Dudensing Gallery in New York and commissioned Blackstone to paint her portrait. ==References== "Stell Anderson [sic] and Lois Wann to Appear in Academy Recitals". ''The Brooklyn Eagle'', Trend section, Jan 26, 1941, p. 8. "Stell Andersen in Recital". ''The Music News'', p. 28. Tintner, Tanya. [http://www.temple.edu/boyer/documents/TheRecordCollectorArticleonJSWinter2012.pdf "An American in Vienna"]. ''The Record Collector'' (Winter 2012), p. 39. Guerry, Jack. ''Silvio Scionti: Remembering a Master Pianist and Teacher''. University of North Texas Press, Moore, Edward. "Some Pleasing Piano Playing Is Exhibited by Stell Andersen". ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Jan. 20, 1928, p. 23. Williams, Jesse. [http://www.lessontutor.com/jw_pioneering_the_future.pdf ''Pioneering the Future, Women of Achievement Born in 19th Century Mississippi'']. Tishomingo County Courthouse Archives and History Museum, 2004. ''A Mystical Vision: The Art of Harriet Blackstone 1864–1939''. Vermont: Bennington Museum, 1984. {{authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Andersen, Stell}} Category:1897 births Category:1989 deaths Category:American Conservatory of Music alumni Category:Musicians from Iowa Category:American women classical pianists Category:20th-century American women pianists Category:20th-century classical pianists Category:20th-century American classical pianists --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Stell Andersen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stell_Andersen) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stell_Andersen?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.