George Winston, Grammy-Winning Pianist, Dead of Cancer at 74

Winston wrote music for films and television projects including 'The Velveteen Rabbit' and 'This Is America, Charlie Brown'

George Winston, a pianist who's sold millions of records and earned a Grammy Award, died on Sunday. He was 74.

The news was confirmed on Winston's website, as reps for the musician write in his biography section, "We are deeply saddened to share the news that George Winston has passed on after a 10-year battle with cancer. George quietly and painlessly left this world while asleep on Sunday, June 4, 2023."

According to his website, Winston "courageously managed serious cancers" and had a bone marrow transplant for myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) in 2013.

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"Throughout his cancer treatments, George continued to write and record new music, and he stayed true to his greatest passion: performing for live audiences while raising funds for Feeding America to help fight the national hunger crisis along with donating proceeds from each of his concerts to local food banks," continues the updated biography.

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Born to parents George and Mary, Winston grew up mainly in Montana as well as Mississippi and Florida, and he listened to rock and R&B throughout hid childhood. He began playing the organ in 1967, followed by the acoustic piano in 1971.

"In addition to working on stride piano, he also at this time came up with this own style of melodic instrumental music on solo piano, called folk piano. In 1972, he recorded his first solo piano album, Ballads and Blues 1972, for the late guitarist John Fahey's Takoma label," reads his website.

He found commercial success starting in the 1980s with two platinum-certified albums, Autumn and Winter into Spring, which were followed by the three-times platinum-certified December. His 1994 album Forest won the Grammy Award for best new age album.

Winston also worked on several soundtracks, including 1984's The Velveteen Rabbit, 1988's This Is America Charlie Brown, 1995's Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, 2002's Pumpkin Circle and 2003's Bread Comes to Life.

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His most recent album, Night, was released in May 2022 and featured "a vivid look into Winston’s nocturnal world where life begins as the sun sets on each day," per his website.

Throughout his career, Winston sold over 15 million records and performed "nearly 100 concerts annually," reads the biography.

He is survived by his sister, niece and nephew.

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