Moments
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1952 - In the Studio with Juilliard Teacher Rosina Lhévinne.
1954 - Editorial Portrait of Van Cliburn
1954 - Van poses with his Juilliard mentor and teacher, Rosina Lhévinne
1956 - Van at the music festival in Marlboro, with a young James Levine who grew up to become a famous conductor.
1958 - Van walks on the streets of Moscow before his historic win at the International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition.
1958 - Van anxiously waits backstage before performing one of his pieces at the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow.
1958 - Van shaking hands with Sviatoslav Richter at the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow.
1958 - Van performing in the third round of the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow.
1958 - Van performing to an enraptured audience at the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow.
1958 - Van bows before an adoring audience at the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow.
1958 - Van accepting first place prize at the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow from Dmitri Shostakovitch, a prominent Russian composer of the 20th century.
July 12, 1958 - Charles Schulz references Van Cliburn for his iconic Peanuts comic strip in 1958.
1958 - Van Cliburn's famously large hands showcased while on tour in Germany. Photograph by Gus Schuettler.
1958 - A young Van with conductor and often-collaborator Kirill Kondrashin
1958 - Van returning to New York City in May 1958 after winning the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow. He was met with a ticker tape parade, the only musician given this honor.
1958 - Van returning to New York City in May 1958 after winning the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow. He was met with a ticker tape parade, the only musician given this honor.
1958 - Van Cliburn portrait on the cover of Time Magazine in 1958 after winning the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow. Illustration by Robert Vickrey.
1958 - Van being interviewed on the popular tv show Person to Person.
1958 - Van performing at a 1958 Lotos Club Dinner in New York City.
1958 - Van meeting Nikita Krushchev, then Premier of the USSR, after his historic win at the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow.
1958 - Van while on tour in Germany. Photograph by Gus Schuettler.
1958 - Van returning to New York City in May 1958 after winning the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow. He was met with a ticker tape parade, the only musician given this honor.
1958 - Van with his supportive parents Harvey Lavan Cliburn, Sr., and Rildia Bee O'Bryan Cliburn.
1958 - Van while being interviewed in London
1958 - Van's appearance on the show What's My Line?
1959 - Political cartoon of Van by cartoonist Harold Maples depicting Van enchanting the USSR as a “Master Bear Charmer” by playing the piano.
1959 - Publicity photo of Van at the height of his fame.
1959 - Ink illustration of Van by Alfred Bendiner.
1959 - Van at the first ever Grammy awards where he was nominated for Album of the year and won for Best Classical Performance with his winning Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 in B Flat Minor, Op. 23. Pictured next to master of ceremonies, Meredith Wilson, and vocalist Bobby Darin.
Early 1960s - Van with Karl Haas, classical radio host for WJR.
1960 - Van performing with Orchestra.
1960 - Van with conductor Fritz Reiner.
1960 - Van posing with Belka and Strelka, the first dogs to have safely been to space.
1961 - Van rehearsing with the World Youth Symphony Orchestra.
April 6, 1962 - Van Cliburn with Former President Truman, Kansas City, April 6 1962.
1962 - Van after performing in Tel Aviv, Israel, pictured with conductor, George Singer.
1963 - Van Cliburn at the Interlochen Center for The Arts with founder Joe Maddy and student Cynthia Raim.
1963 - Van Cliburn and his mother Rildia Bee with President John F. Kennedy after he performed for the President and company.
1964 - Van Cliburn performing at the University of North Texas.
December 20, 1965 - Van Cliburn with Former President Truman and Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey, Kansas City, Missouri.
1966 - Van Cliburn at his piano
1966 - Van Cliburn at his piano
1966 - Van Cliburn and his mother Rildia Bee.
1966 - Van practicing at his home.
1968 - Van practicing before performing at the White House State Dinner for President Lyndon B. Johnson.
1968 - Van performing on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
Early 1970s - Van at dinner with journalist Jerry Bowles and friends.
1970 - Van at the Chautauqua Institution in New York State.
1971 - Van with Ima Hogg, "The First Lady of Texas," after performing with the Houston Symphony Orchestra.
May 26, 1972 - Van Cliburn performing for President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon for the White House State Dinner.
1972 - Van Cliburn with President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon for the White House State Dinner.
1972 - Van Cliburn accepts applause after performing for President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon for the White House State Dinner.
1976 - Van with pianist Arthur Rubinstein and President Gerald Ford.
1977 - Program from the Philippines showcasing Van Cliburn as a performer along with ballet dancers Margot Fonteyn, and Rudolf Nureyev.
1977 - Van with First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos, and ballet dancers Margot Fonteyn de Arias, and Rudolf Nureyev.
1987, Van performing Moscow Nights at the White House State Dinner for President Reagan and the First Lady as well as Soviet guests Mikhail Gorbachev, Premier of the Soviet Union, and his wife, Raisa.
1988 - Van with his mother, Rildia Bee.
1990 - President George H.W. Bush introduces Van at the White House State Dinner for the Hungarian Prime Minister Jozsef Antall.
1998 - Van at piano in his Fort Worth home.
2001 - Van performing with Boston Symphony Orchestra.
2001 - Van at the 2001 Kennedy Center Honors with fellow honorees actor Jack Nicholson, opera singer Luciano Pavarotti, actress Julie Andrews, and record producer Quincy Jones.
2001 - Van Cliburn at the 2001 Kennedy Center Honors.
2003 - Van with President George W. Bush and the First Lady Laura Bush after receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
2004 - Van performs at a memorial concert dedicated to the memory of the victims of the Beslan school massacre in Moscow.
2004 - Van receives the Order of Friendship of Peoples from Russian Premier Vladimir Putin.
2004 - Van receives the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award from American music industry executive Neil Portnow.
2006 - Van takes a bow with the World Youth Symphony Orchestra.
2008 - Van at the presentation ceremony of the Liberty Medal that was presented to former Premier of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev in Philadelphia.
2009 - Van instructing at a Russian Masterclass.
2011 - Van receiving the National Medal of Arts from President Obama.
2011 - Van in Moscow as an Honorary Chairman of the International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition.
2011 - Van showing the size of his hands at a debutante party in Fort Worth.
May 2012 - Van in his Fort Worth Home a few months before publicly announcing his bone cancer diagnosis.
2012 - Van in his Fort Worth Home a few months before publicly announcing his bone cancer diagnosis.
2012 - Van making one of his last public appearances at the Van Cliburn Foundation 50th Anniversary Gold Medalist Concert at Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth.
2013 - Painting of Van Cliburn by Gregory Manchess.
2017 - Illustration for the 15th quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.