Stephen Kovacevich, the pianist whose performances combined technical brilliance with willingness to take interpretive risks, has died aged 86. Tom Service's tribute in The Guardian describes a musician whose playing possessed "beauty, clarity and danger," and notes that Kovacevich remained engaged with the art form until recently, discussing emerging pianists and historic performances from his hospital bed following a hip operation. Service recalls that conversation with Kovacevich was "utterly intense, totally opinionated," and that the pianist drew inspiration from performers including Vladimir Horowitz and Sergei Rachmaninov, as well as mentoring younger artists like Yuja Wang.