Crystal Bridges Museum of American art has been given a Steinway Concert Grand piano that belonged to pianist Van Cliburn, according to a new release from the museum.
"The gift of Van's piano is one that has given me great joy," Thomas Smith, Cliburn's longtime partner who is donating the piano, said in the news release. "The upcoming concert that the Museum and my friend Alice Walton have organized because of that gift, celebrates Van’s passionate belief that great music is an art form capable of bringing beauty to all."
The museum will celebrate the gift with an Oct. 9 concert by Olga Kern, who won the Gold Medal at the 2001 Van Cliburn Competition.
Cliburn, who scored a victory at the 1958 International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, "has been hailed as one of the most persuasive ambassadors of American culture, as well as one of the greatest pianists in the history of music," the news release stated.
He has performed for every American president since Harry Truman, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2011, according to the news release. He died in 2013.