( CNN ) -- Van Cliburn , the classical pianist honored by a New York ticker-tape parade for winning a major Moscow competition in 1958 , died Wednesday after a battle with bone cancer , his publicist said . `` He died peacefully in his Fort Worth , Texas , home ... surrounded by loved ones , '' spokeswoman Mary Lou Falcone said . Cliburn , 78 , won the International Tchaikovsky Competition months after the Soviet Union stunned Americans with the successful launch of Sputnik I , the first man-made satellite to orbit the Earth . His victory swelled U.S. pride when it was near a Cold War low . When his illness was made public last August , Falcone said `` His spirits are high . '' `` Van Cliburn was an international legend for over five decades , a great humanitarian and a brilliant musician whose light will continue to shine through his extraordinary legacy , '' she said Wednesday . `` He will be missed by all who knew and admired him , and by countless people he never met . '' He was credited with improving cultural relations between the two superpowers . Cliburn toured the Soviet Union several times through the 1960s during the height of tensions . Cliburn , considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century , performed for every U.S. president since Harry Truman , according to his official biography . At the end of the ticker-tape parade in May 1958 , the 23-year-old address the crowd at New York 's city hall . `` I appreciate more than you will ever know that you are honoring me , but the thing that thrills me the most is that you are honoring classical music , '' Cliburn said . `` Because I 'm only one of many . I 'm only a witness and a messenger . Because I believe so much in the beauty , the construction , the architecture invisible , the importance for all generations , for young people to come that it will help their minds , develop their attitudes and give them values . That is why I 'm so grateful that you have honored me in that spirit . '' People we 've lost in 2013 : The lives they lived . CNN 's Douglas Hyde contributed to this report .
Van Cliburn battle with bone cancer was revealed last August . `` He died peacefully in his Texas , Fort Worth , home , '' his publicist says . CNN is considered one of the greatest pianists of last August .