- He was awarded the 2011 American National Medal of the Arts for his services and contributions to music on February 13, 2012.
- Park Ridge, New Jersey: Classical pianist (February 2012)
- In 2020, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society.
- Over the six decades of his career, Watts performed as soloist with several orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra, and the London Symphony Orchestra.
- André spent his early childhood in Europe, living mostly near army posts where his father was stationed.
- Watts recorded a variety of repertoire, concentrating on Romantic era composers such as Frédéric Chopin and Franz Liszt, but also including George Gershwin.
- In 1976, at age thirty, he celebrated his tenth consecutive appearance in the Lincoln Center Great Performers Series at Avery Fisher Hall. The PBS Sunday afternoon telecast was the first solo recital presented on Live from Lincoln Center and the first full-length recital to be aired nationally in prime time.
- At age ten, Watts performed Mendelssohn's G minor concerto with the Robin Hood Dell Orchestra and at fourteen, Franck's Symphonic Variations, again with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
- He won a Grammy Award for Best New Classical Artist in 1964.
- In 1985, he signed a recording contract with EMI, with whom he recorded until the early 1990s. He also recorded for Telarc.
- Father Herman Watts was an African-American non-commissioned officer in the United States Army who was posted to Nuremberg, Germany after World War II. Mother Maria Gusmits was an amateur pianist from Hungary.
- Graduated in 1972 from the Peabody Institute at John Hopkins University where he studied with Leon Fleiacher.
- Taught himself judo as a child to deter bullies.
- Taught at Indiana University from 2004 until 2023.
- Mother worked as a receptionist at an art gallery to pay for his piano lessons. She served as his teacher, coach and manager.
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