Louis Moreau Gottschalk was an American pianist and composer who spent most of his career outside of the United States. At the age of 13, he father took him to France for formal music training. He returned to his home country 11 years later, traveled extensively throughout this country and Central and South America. In 1865, a scandal in Oakland, CA, caused him again to leave the United States, never to return.  He chose to travel in South America. During a concert in Rio de Janeiro, he collapsed from malaria just after playing one of his compositions. He never recovered.