While he was teaching at Juilliard, Schwartz won first prize in the Naumberg Competition, and gave his New York debut recital in Town Hall. He has also accompanied instrumentalists and singers in concerts throughout the United States. Before that he appeared in Town Hall with the Little Symphony Orchestra as the winner of another competition. He was a gold medal winner in the Artists Division of the American Guild of Piano Teachers in 1952. On the other end of competitions, Schwartz is popular as a judge, most recently judging the Corpus Cristi International Young Artists Competition.
Competitions are all somewhat arbitrary.
His recording with the Oberlin Trio of French trios is on Amplitude Records. The challenge is to find the right sound, or the right gesture which illuminates the inner meaning of the work. As I play the piano these days, I feel an even closer kinship with the color and sound, with the character and shape of the music, the balance between its emotional content and its structure. The process is endless and ever stimulating, and I will continue to strive for ever-deeper meaning as long as I am able physically and intellectually.