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Debra Byrd, who had a long and varied career in music, mostly behind-the-scenes, died on Tuesday, March 5, in Los Angeles. She was 72. No cause of death was given.
Highlights of her career include a top 30 hit on the Billboard Hot 100; singing behind such stars as Barry Manilow, Bob Dylan and Mary J. Blige; and a long run as a vocal coach on such talent shows as American Idol and The Voice.
Byrd’s career is a reminder that someone can achieve sustained success in the music business even if they never quite attain stardom.
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Byrd had a decades-long association and friendship with Manilow. She was a member of the female trio Lady Flash, which backed him in concert and on Broadway, bringing some sass and soulfulness to his show. A recording of his show Barry Manilow on Broadway in 1976-77 became his Billboard 200-topping album Barry Manilow Live! in 1977. Byrd also backed Manilow on Barry Manilow at the Gershwin (1989) and on the primetime network special Arista Records’ 25th Anniversary Celebration (2000). In 1976, Manilow co-wrote and co-produced Lady Flash’s “Street Singin’,” which reached No. 27 on the Hot 100.
“This is one of the saddest days of my life,” Manilow wrote on X. “I just can’t wrap my mind around the fact that Debra is no longer with me. She was one of the most wonderful friends I’ve ever had. I will miss you forever, my love. -Barry Manilow”
Byrd may have achieved her most consistent success as a vocal coach on TV shows, sharing her decades of experience with the young contestants. Several of them saluted her on social media following her death.
“She encouraged and supported us from the very beginning,” Jennifer Hudson wrote on Instagram. “I am so grateful for everything she taught us. She will be dearly missed, but her legacy lives on through the music of countless artists she influenced during her lifetime. Rest in peace, Debra.” Hudson competed in Season 3 of American Idol, finishing in seventh place, and has gone on to become an EGOT.
“I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that no one was a better mentor, coach, teacher, or champion to us Idol contestants than Byrd was,” Clay Aiken shared via Deadline. Aiken placed second in season two of Idol. “No one spent more time with us. I’ll never forget her drilling into us how we needed to look right into the camera and connect with the audience at home. She was a light in so many lives. I am so lucky that I got to call her a friend.”
Elliott Yamin, who placed third in season five of Idol, also weighed in on Instagram. “Debra had this indelible spirit about her that radiated any room she occupied. Her passion for life, music and helping others traveled far beyond her own experiences in the business, and into the lives of so many young aspiring singers & hopefuls like me. She was our first vocal coach on the show and I never forgot the positive lasting impression she made on me. Always encouraging and supportive well after our season ended, and all throughout my career! Rest easy Debra Byrd. You are loved!”
Byrd was born on July 19, 1951, in Cleveland, Ohio, and attended Kent State University.
Byrd collaborated with Bob Dylan in Australia on his tour, Hard to Handle: Bob Dylan in Concert, where he played with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Byrd was credited as a backup vocalist on Dylan’s “Band of the Hand” (from the film of the same name), which he recorded with Petty and his band. Stevie Nicks also served as a backup vocalist on that track.
She was a vocal coach on the Oscar telecast in 2014. On the telecast four years later, she was a member the choir singing behind Mary J. Blige on her Oscar-nominated song “Mighty River.”
Byrd also lent her talents to film soundtracks, including The Lion King 1 1/2, The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride and Sister Act II.
NBC hired Byrd to oversee vocal production for their 2019 Super Bowl tribute to Prince, directed by Spike Lee.
Byrd had the starring role as Da Singer in the national touring company of Broadway’s Bring In ‘Da Noise, Bring In ‘Da Funk. Her theatrical credits also include The Human Comedy and André De Shields’ Haarlem Nocturne (both on Broadway in 2004) and the national tour of Ain’t Misbehavin.’
In the academic world, Byrd was chair of the vocal department at the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles. She also served as an artist in residence at the Berklee College of Music.
No information on survivors or memorial plans was immediately available.
Steve Lawrence, the charismatic Grammy- and Emmy-winning crooner who delighted audiences for decades in nightclubs, on concert stages and in film and television appearances, died Thursday (March 7). He was 88.
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Lawrence died in Los Angeles of complications from Alzheimer’s disease, publicist Susan DuBow announced. He partnered with the late Eydie Gormé, his wife of 55 years, in the very popular act Steve & Eydie.
With his boyish good looks, silky voice and breezy personality, Lawrence broke into show business when he won a talent competition on Arthur Godfrey’s CBS show and signed with King Records as a teenager. The singer chose to stay old school and resist the allure of rock ‘n’ roll.
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“It didn’t attract me as much,” Lawrence once said. “I grew up in a time period when music was written by Irving Berlin and Cole Porter and George and Ira Gershwin and Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart and Sammy Cahn and Julie Stein. Those people, I related to — what they were writing — because it was much more melodic.”
Lawrence’s smooth stylings were heard on dozens of solo albums, starting in 1953 with an eponymous LP. In 1963, he topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks with the Gerry Goffin-Carole King pop ballad “Go Away Little Girl.” The single became the first in history to reach No. 1 by two different artists, after Donny Osmond recorded his chart-topping version in 1971.
Lawrence also made the top 10 with 1959’s “Pretty Blue Eyes” (No. 9), 1960’s “Footsteps” (No. 7) and 1961’s “Portrait of My Love” (No. 9).
On Broadway, Lawrence starred as Sammy Glick in the long-running What Makes Sammy Run?, a musical adaptation of Budd Schulberg’s novel, and received a best actor Tony nomination in 1964. A year later, he hosted a short-lived CBS variety program, and in the 1970s, he was a semi-regular on The Carol Burnett Show, appearing on more than 2 dozen episodes.
Many will remember Lawrence for his portrayal of manager Maury Sline in The Blues Brothers (1980). When Jake (John Belushi) and Elwood (Dan Aykroyd) need to quickly raise money to save their childhood orphanage, they turn to Maury to book a gig. Lawrence utters one of the film’s most memorable lines when he hears how much they’re looking for. “Five-thousand dollars?” he sputters. “Who do you think you are, The Beatles?”
He reprised the character in the 1998 sequel Blues Brothers 2000.
Lawrence also played a pal of Steve Martin‘s greeting card writer in The Lonely Guy (1984); was Morty Fine, the father of Fran Drescher‘s character on CBS’ The Nanny; and guest-starred on other series including Night Gallery, Sanford and Son, Murder, She Wrote, Frasier, Hot in Cleveland and Two and a Half Men.
At the height of their popularity in the 1960s and ’70s, Lawrence and Gormé were one of show business’ hottest couples. If a variety show was on TV, it was only a matter of time before Steve & Eydie would be booked for it.
They won an Emmy in 1979 for their NBC special Steve & Eydie Celebrate Irving Berlin and had fun on game shows, appearing on What’s My Line?, I’ve Got a Secret and Password All-Stars, to name a few.
When they weren’t shining on the small screen, they were wowing fans in concert and at top nightclubs throughout the country. They were a staple in Las Vegas, headlining Caesars Palace, the Sands, the Sahara and the Desert Inn, and the Las Vegas Entertainment Awards honored them four times as Musical Variety Act of the Year.
In 1981, Lawrence realized a lifelong dream when he and his wife performed a series of sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall.
“They are both confident, full-throated singers who show the kind of assured stage presence that can come from years of playing to Las Vegas audiences,” John S. Wilson wrote in his review for The New York Times. “Mr. Lawrence, like so many singers who work in that milieu, uses singing mannerisms that owe a great deal to Frank Sinatra; Miss Gormé has a smoky voice with a powerful projection that enables her to belt out torch songs with a figure that brings such legendary singers as Sophie Tucker up to date.”
Steve Lawrence was born Sidney Liebowitz in Brooklyn on July 8, 1935. The son of a cantor, he grew up singing in synagogue choirs. Music was always a part of his life, but he didn’t know what direction it would take him until the day he listened to his first Frank Sinatra record.
“I must’ve been 15 years old when I heard him. I think I knew [then] what I wanted to do with the rest of my musical life,” he said. “His influence — not only on me, but everyone who came after him — was so indelible, so powerful.”
(Lawrence would hang around with Sinatra and the rest of the Rat Pack, and later, Steve & Eydie opened for Ol’ Blue Eyes on his Diamond Jubilee World Tour. For almost a year starting in 1990, they visited 13 countries for 41 sold-out performances that culminated with a concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden.)
Lawrence attended Thomas Jefferson High School, but books weren’t a priority. He would skip classes to spend his days in Manhattan at the Brill Building, hustling to make connections and pick up some cash singing demos. It was at the songwriting mecca that he first met Gormé; he was entering the building as singer Bob Manning, an acquaintance, was leaving with her.
“Bob said, ‘I want you to meet Eydie Gormé,’” Lawrence recalled in a 2014 interview with the Los Angeles Times. “She had her hair in a ponytail, and her ponytail hit me in my face.”
In 1953, they met again when they were each booked to sing on the Steve Allen-hosted Tonight!, a forerunner of The Tonight Show. They started doing duets and two years later collaborated on their first single together: “(Close Your Eyes) Take a Deep Breath”/ “Besame Mucho.”
Lawrence and Gormé were wed at the El Rancho Vegas hotel in December 1957. A few months later, they filled in for Allen with a summer replacement variety series that ran for eight weeks on NBC.
After he spent two years in the U.S. Army, they released three albums in 1960, including Steve & Eydie We Got Us, which won them a Grammy for best performance by a vocal group.
In 1968, they headed to Broadway to star in the original musical Golden Rainbow, and that played for more than 380 performances. (Lawrence closed the first act by singing “I’ve Gotta Be Me,” later made popular by Sammy Davis Jr.)
Though they each enjoyed success as a solo act, audiences seemed to prefer Steve & Eydie together. And they did so until Gormé died of an undisclosed illness in August 2013. “Eydie has been my partner on stage and in life for more than 55 years,” Lawrence said then. “I fell in love with her the moment I saw her and even more the first time I heard her sing. While my personal loss is unimaginable, the world has lost one of the greatest pop vocalists of all time.”
A year after Gormé’s death, Lawrence released the solo album When You Come Back to Me Again. He had recorded it when she was ill and put it on hold when she died. When it came time to turn his attention back to music, Lawrence thought it only appropriate to dedicate the album to his wife and release it on Valentine’s Day.
“Eydie heard that album, and she thought it was terrific,” Lawrence said. “We were attached at the hip — Steve-and-Eydie. It was like we were one person, to be married that long.”
It was more than two years before Lawrence would return to the stage. On Valentine’s Day in 2016, he performed a selection of Sinatra tunes at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert.
Survivors include his son, David, a film and television composer whose credits include the High School Musical films; daughter-in-law Faye; granddaughter Mabel; and brother Bernie. Another son, Michael, died of heart failure in 1986 at age 23.
Donations in his memory can be made to Alzheimer’s Los Angeles here.
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
Jim Beard, a solo artist and touring keyboardist for Steely Dan for the past 16 years has died at age 63. The news was confirmed by a spokesperson for the group in a statement on Wednesday (March 6) that revealed the pianist, composer, keyboardist, producer and arranger died on March 2 due to complications from a sudden illness; at press time a cause of death had not been announced.
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Beard joined the live Steely Dan band in 2008 for the Think Fast Tour and in addition to performing with the long-running jazz-influenced rock group — including at his final show with the band on Jan. 20 in Phoenix, AZ — he was also a touring member of the Eagles on their Long Goodbye tour.
Born in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania on August 26, 1960, Beard took clarinet, saxophone and sting bass lessons as a teenager and studied jazz at Indiana University, where he played in a bar band that featured session drummer Kenny Aronoff (John Mellencamp, John Fogerty) and trumpet player Chris Botti.
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According to an official bio, after moving to New York in 1985, Beard set off on a prolific career of composing — on tracks by John McLaughlin, Michael Brecker and many others — and toured the world with such jazz greats as Pat Metheny, McLaughlin and Wayne Shorter. He also performed on recordings by Dizzy Gillespie, Al Jarreau, David Sandborn, Dianne Reeves, Meshell Ndegeocello and rock guitar virtuoso Steve Vai, as well as with the Metropole Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra as well as composing music for TV and movie scores.
Between tours with Metheny and McLaughlin’s Mahavishu Orchestra, Beard recorded six solo CDs and taught at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, the Mason Gross School of Arts at Rutgers University, the Aaron Copland School of Music in New York and the Sibelius Academy in Finland. Beard’s productions and compositions were nominated for seven Grammy awards, with one win in 2007 for his playing on “Some Skunk Funk” by Randy and Michael Brecker.
Brit Turner, a founding member and the drummer for rock band Blackberry Smoke, died on Sunday (March 3). He was 57 years old. Turner was battling glioblastoma, a form of cancer in the brain, and in November 2022, underwent a surgery to remove a brain tumor. The band confirmed the news of his death via […]
Gina Banfi de Abello, a distinguished figure in vocal coaching, died on Saturday (March 2) at the age of 92. Known for her work in choir and vocal training, Banfi mentored notable artists including Shakira and Colombian singer and composer Nicolás Tovar.
Her son Jaime Abello Banfi confirmed the news on social media on the day of her passing with an image of his mother. “Gina Banfi de Abello, November 26, 1931 – March 2, 2024,” reads the announcement. “Jaime, Mauricio, Beatriz, Maribel and Hugo Abello Banfi, her sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren and great-grandchildren invite you to attend the funeral, Sunday, March 3, 2024.”
In response to the flood of comments he received on his social media channels, Jamie expressed his gratitude in another Instagram post. “I sincerely appreciate hundreds of messages of solidarity and affection received at times when my family and I tried to accept the sad reality of the physical death of my mother Gina Banfi de Abello, who made her transition with lucidity, serenity and full of love and gratitude,” he wrote alongside a photo of his mother. “We are comforted by these messages, as well as the media coverage of her departure, which highlights her contribution as an artist and music educator.”
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According to a 2011 interview with Argentinian newspaper La Gaceta, Banfi coached Shakira in 1992, when the then rising star was preparing to sing at Chile’s Viña del Mar International Song Festival at 15 years old.
“She was out of the ordinary. She was something different. When she was very young, she was a belly dancer. She has a gifted talent,” Banfi told La Gaceta. “She has always had that same powerful voice. I taught her some breathing techniques and I prepared her when she went to Viña del Mar and it was a pleasure for me. Since she was a little girl, she expressed herself as she does today. It was an admirable thing for such a young girl.”
Banfi’s journey into music began in her early years, as she turned to studying piano after her endeavors in painting did not pan out. Her home environment was rich with music and art, fostering her passion for the arts from a young age. Over the years, the Barranquilla, Colombia, artist became an integral part of various musical groups, including the Coro Santa Cecilia and Coro Madrigal, showcasing her talent and dedication to choral music.
See the announcement of her passing below:
Cat Janice, a singer-songwriter whose “Dance You Outta My Head” went viral on TikTok earlier this year, died on Wednesday (Feb. 28). She was 31 years old.
Janice’s brother posted the news to her Instagram page, writing in the caption, “This morning, from her childhood home and surrounded by her loving family, Catherine peacefully entered the light and love of her heavenly creator.”
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The statement continued, “We are eternally thankful for the outpouring of love that Catherine and our family have received over the past few months. Cat saw her music go places she never expected and rests in the peace of knowing that she will continue to provide for her son through her music. This would not have been possible without all of you.”
According to the statement, new music will be released posthumously. “Per Cat’s request, there is some more art that she wants to share too. All in due time,” the statement concludes.
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Janice was diagnosed with sarcoma, a rare cancer that develops in the bones and soft tissues, after noticing a lump in her neck, as she explained on TikTok. She underwent surgery, chemo and radiation before being declared cancer-free on July 22, 2022.
Earlier this year, Janice shared with her followers that the cancer had returned, and she entered hospice. The singer then transferred all of her songs to her seven-year-old son Loren, so that all proceeds from the tracks would go to him.
In a devastating TikTok shared on Jan. 6, she revealed that the cancer had “won” and that she’d be releasing one more song, “Dance Outta My Head,” for her birthday that month. “I want my last song to bring joy and fun! It’s all I’ve ever wanted through my battle with cancer.”
“Please please share this, I need to leave this with [Loren]. If there is anything you need to know, is that the only opinion of yourself is your opinion. Love yourself and be gentle with others. I hope to make it through this but if not, to all a good night,” she captioned the post.
Since then, “Dance Outta My Head” topped the TikTok Billboard Top 50 dated Feb. 17. “Dance You Outta My Head” concurrently reached the top 10 of Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart for the first time, lifting 11-10. It earned 5,000 downloads Feb. 2-8, good enough for its first week at No. 1 on the Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales list, and 1.2 million official U.S. streams, according to Luminate.
Rowland Martin Buyincé, uncle to Beyoncé and Tina Knowles‘ older brother, died over the weekend. He was 77 years old. Knowles took to Instagram on Monday (Feb. 26) to announce the news and pay tribute her brother, who was affectionately known as Butch. “My Beautiful big brother Butch went to be with God this weekend. […]
Juana Bacallao, a renowned Cuban singer and cabaret diva who still performed until recently, has died. She was 98. Bacallao died Saturday (Feb. 24) after spending several days at a hospital in Havana, according to a statement from Cuba’s Ministry of Culture. Officials didn’t say why she was hospitalized. Bacallao was known for her husky […]
Shinsadong Tiger, a chart-topping and award-winning K-pop producer and songwriter, has passed away, his entertainment label confirmed on Friday (Feb. 23). The cause of death is currently unknown. He was 40.
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Following local reports that Shinsadong Tiger (neé Lee Ho-yang, also known professionally as S.Tiger) was found collapsed in his Seoul workplace, his representative agency TR Entertainment confirmed the news that “Producer Shinsadong Tiger suddenly left our side on February 23, 2024.”
In the statement on social media, TR Entertainment requested refraining from “speculative reports for the bereaved families” and that funeral proceedings will be held quietly only by family, relatives and colleagues.
TR Entertainment also represents TRI.BE, Universal Music Korea’s first K-pop group crafted in collaboration with Shinsadong Tiger and signed with Republic Records in the U.S. On Tuesday (Feb. 20), TRI.BE released a new single “Diamond” and b-side track “Run,” both produced and co-written by the late producer. TR shared that TRI.BE is canceling and postponing its promotional schedule while promising to return for more television performances “since it is the last album that Shinsadong Tiger prepared and released with TRI.BE during his lifetime.”
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TRI.BE was Shinsadong Tiger’s latest act after previously crafting and producing girl group EXID, who unexpectedly exploded in popularity two years into its career with the S.Tiger-produced single “Up & Down” in 2014 after a fan-recorded live performance went viral. Shinsadong Tiger produced seven EXID songs that charted on Billboard‘s World Digital Song Sales chart until the group went on hiatus in 2020.
Lee Ho-yang began his work as a songwriter in 2005 and came to helm some defining tracks of the genre throughout his nearly two decades of work with artists. With a sound that could blend electro-pop and Korea’s traditional trot genre to singles that embraced everything from orchestral production to Afrobeat, his works are tough to pinpoint musically but point to K-pop’s evolution.
Between 2011-2013, Lee produced four No. 1s on the (now-discontinued) K-Pop Hot 100 in T-ara’s “Roly-Poly” and “Lovey Dovey,” Trouble Maker’s “Now” and Ailee’s “U&I.” Meanwhile, his work like “Fiction” by boy band Beast won Song of the Year at the 2011 KBS Song Festival awards, while several of his creations with EXID, T-ara, HyunA and WJSN all were named in Billboard‘s 100 Greatest K-Pop Songs of the 2010s.
Shinsadong Tiger’s productions also had a knack for reaching wider audiences beyond Korean-music fans. In addition to EXID’s aforementioned breakout hit, HyunA’s “Bubble Pop!” from 2011 was an early YouTube smash and made the star the first K-pop soloist to break 100 million views on a music video. Later, “Bboom Bboom” by MOMOLAND helped break the rising girl group to the top of the charts in 2018, while its 626 million YouTube views make it one of the platform’s most-viewed K-pop videos ever.
Dalsooobin, a member of the girl group Dal Shabet whose singles like “B.B.B (Big Baby Baby)” and “Fri. Sat. Sun.” were produced by Shinsadong Tiger, shared her condolences and the former single’s album cover on her YouTube channel. Damjun, a member and songwriter-composer for his boy band LIONESSES, wrote “Thank you for your masterpieces” on Threads.
U.K. producer duo LDN Noise (who have helmed tracks with the likes of EXO, Chris Brown, NCT and NMIXX), Los Angeles-based Softserveboy (SEVENTEEN, Gwen Stefani, ENHYPEN, P1Harmony) and Damuer H. Leffridge (whose clients have included T-ara and B2K) all shared their condolences on Instagram. At the same time, L.A.-born Jae Chong (Uhm Junghwa, BoA, JYJ, Jolin Tsai, BIBI) called it “truly sad news” on the platform.
Longtime Trans-Siberian Orchestra keyboardist Vitalij Kuprij died on Tuesday at age 49. The pianist’s death was confirmed by the orchestral rock band on their socials, in which they paid tribute to the Ukrainian-born musician who spent more than a decade touring with the group whose over-the-top holiday shows have become an annual Boxscore Report-topping staple of the Christmas season.
“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our dear friend and bandmate, Vitalij Kuprij,” read the TSO’s statement. “He was a world-renowned classical pianist and composer. In 2010, Vitalij joined TSO for the inaugural ‘Beethoven’s Last Night’ tour and seamlessly became an integral part of the band. His flawless and energetic performances consistently captivated audiences, and many of you came to know and love him as much as we did.”
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The post noted that in addition to his prowess as a musician, Kuprij was an “accomplished chess player, an avid fisherman, and simply a fun-loving soul. His absence will be profoundly felt by all.” Kuprij was part of TSO from 2009-2019 and rejoined the group in 2021, most recently performing on their Nov.-Dec. 2023 tour.
His friend, Finnish guitarist/producer Lars Eric Mattsson also paid homage to Kuprij, writing, “Woke up to really sad news this morning as my dear friend and keyboard maestro Vitalij Kuprij has passed away last night. The Ukranian born virtuoso was living in Philadelphia and recently came off another hugely successful tour with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. I have known and worked with Vitalij for over 20 years and he always talked about seeing me here in Finland to go fishing, which was his second love after music.”
At press time no additional information was available on the details or cause of Kuprij’s death. According to AllMusic, Kuprij was born in 1974 in Volodarka, Ukraine, and early on showed great promise on the piano, winning first prize in the All-Union Chopin competition in the Republic of Kazan in the former Soviet Union and the top honors at the Geneva Duo competition for violin and piano as a youth.
He formed his first progressive metal band in 1993, Atlantis Rising, relocating to the U.S. in 1995, where the band was refashioned into Artension, which released a series of albums on the Shrapnel label. Kuprij released a number of solo albums and also worked with the groups Ring of Fire and the Vivaldi Metal Project.
Progressive rock band TSO was founded in 1996 by producer/songwriter Paul O’Neill and has been barnstorming arenas from coast-to-coast for more than 25 years with over-the-top productions mixing rock opera theatrics with explosive light shows. Some of their most beloved productions include “Christmas Eve and Other Stories,” “The Christmas Attic” and “Beethoven’s Last Night.”
See the tributes below.