Legendary Recordings Limited edition

32 of the world’s greatest pianists, past and present, including no fewer than five winners of the prestigious Warsaw Chopin Competition, feature in this treasure-house of solo keyboard recordings. In the style of previous “111” boxes, it offers some of the best of the live recitals and recordings that Deutsche Grammophon artists have made over the years, stretching from 1949 to 2013 – with a few surprises and rarities along the way. In many respects Deutsche Grammophon can be regarded as a piano label. Piano recordings have always made up a significant part of the company’s release schedules, and it has consistently sought out the best of the day’s upcoming pianists, as well as signing some great pianists later in their careers. In the former category belong the Chopin Competition winners (Maurizio Pollini, Martha Argerich, Krystian Zimerman, Yundi, Rafal Blechacz); in the latter, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Emil Gilels and Vladimir Horowitz immediately come to mind. Live concerts include the Carnegie Hall débuts of Lang Lang and Daniil Trifonov, and an exceptional recital from Vienna by Yundi. Studio recitals – in the sense of mixed programmes – include the memorable début of Martha Argerich on the label and also that of Vladimir Horowitz, in The Last Romantic. Among the many classic recordings are the first two discs of Maurizio Pollini (Chopin Études and Stravinsky/Prokofiev), Michelangeli’s Debussy, Gilels’ Beethoven sonatas, and Pogorelich’s Ravel (Gaspard de la nuit) – the list is endless… Among the most moving CDs are those of the Grieg Lyric Pieces with Emil Gilels and Wilhelm Kempff’s late Brahms; among the most astounding are Yuja Wang’s selection of encores in Fantasia. In one or two cases, compendia of an artist’s most famous recordings have been created, including Andor Foldes’s milestone Bartók, taken from a 4-LP set, and Monique Haas’s timeless Ravel. The repertoire covered stretches from Bach to Boulez. Mozart, Beethoven and the Romantics are represented in good measure; relative rarities include a sparkling Haydn sonatas disc from the young Christoph Eschenbach (presented here complete on CD for the first time) and a disc devoted to the still underrated sonatas of Weber, splendidly interpreted by Dino Ciani.