Gary Graffman, a former child prodigy whose successful international career as a concert pianist was cut short when a rare neurological disorder cost him the use of his right hand in his 50s, setting him on a new and distinguished path as a teacher and administrator, died on Dec. 27 at his home in New York. He was 97.

His performing career lasted until the early 1980s, when he began to suffer from focal dystonia. He never regained use of his right hand, and instead focused on teaching and performing repertory for the left hand.

In his memoir, Mr. Graffman wrote vividly about the pitfalls of live performance. Describing a concert of Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the conductor George Szell, which almost derailed after a section of the orchestra counted wrong. Mr. Graffman wrote, “I felt like someone who had been tied to the railroad tracks as a train whistle is heard in the distance. But,” he added, “Szell made some magic passes in the air and led the orchestra safely across the Red Sea.”