Piano player David Helfgott’s wife Gillian dies near Bellingen aged 90
She met David Helfgott in 1983 and dedicated the rest of her life to seeing his triumphant return to the concert stage after years in obscurity and incarceration in a mental institution.
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Tributes are pouring in for the ‘immeasurably devoted’ wife of Australian pianist David Helfgott.
The 90-year-old passed away on Tuesday, August 16, after a short illness.
Her family issued a statement describing her as an indomitable and resourceful manager.
“A renowned astrologer, she met David in Perth in 1983 and dedicated the rest of her life to seeing his triumphant return to the concert stage after years in obscurity and incarceration in a mental institution,” the family statement from David, Sue and Scot read.
David’s life was the subject of the Oscar-winning 1996 movie Shine.
“Gillian relaunched David’s career in Perth, before setting off for Europe, quickly garnering popular support and critical success in Germany, Denmark and Austria and a joyous adulation that soon flowered across Europe, Turkey, the United States and Asia.”
She wrote Love You to Bits And Pieces: Life with David Helfgott which charts his struggle to escape the legacy of his troubled childhood and how he forms a new sense of self without losing his quirkiness.
The book recounts the pivotal moment in 1995 when he achieved his dream of once again performing Rachmaninov‘s Third Concerto.
They lived together in Bellingen where they gave of their time generously, particularly to the long-running Camp Creative, with David often performing at the local high school on opening night.
“Gillian lived with David in idyllic countryside where she was an irrepressible force, helping the annual Camp Creative festival find local and international success, while also proudly supporting and promoting the 80-strong Bellingen Youth Orchestra.
“A vivacious, social and passionate woman, Gillian will be long remembered and treasured.”
Member for the NSW seat of Oxley Melinda Pavey expressed her condolences, describing her as a “magnificent, brilliant, immeasurably devoted woman, whose zest for life is enviable”.
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