July 2007 marks the 70th birthday of Vladimir Ashkenazy.

This set has been compiled with the full co-operation of the artist from his enormous catalogue of recordings for Decca and embraces his work as one of the most acclaimed pianists of his generation as well as his work for more than twenty-five years as a conductor. This personal collection also focuses on those composers who are of particular significance for Ashkenazy and which have been reflected both on record and in the concert hall during his career.

A very special feature of this set is the inclusion of a bonus interview disc in which Ashkenazy talks about his career and music. This extensive interview (it lasts almost 80 minutes) has been specially recorded in January 2007 and the interview was conducted by the acclaimed film director Christopher Nupen (he has directed many classical music documentaries and filmed Ashkenazy in concert and in the studio on many occasions).

Ashkenazy made his first recording for Decca in March 1963 – Rachmaninov’s monumental Third Piano Concerto – a recording which has achieved reference status and which is included here. This was the time he defected from Russia and came to live in London, shortly after achieving worldwide fame when he was joint winner (with John Ogdon) of the Second International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1962; it marked the start of a recording and concert career which has scarcely been matched by any other pianist for the sheer breadth of repertory. A few weeks after recording Rachmaninov’s Third Concerto Ashkenazy recorded his equally legendary Tchaikovsky First Concerto — another recording which has achieved reference status. During the course of his more than forty years with Decca as a pianist there have been complete cycles of concertos by Mozart (directed from the keboard), Beethoven (three cycles : with Solti, Mehta, and from the keyboard), Rachmaninov (two complete cycles: with Previn and Haitink), Prokofiev (with Previn), Bartók (with Solti) as well as other concertos by Schumann, Chopin, Scriabin. His recordings of solo repertory have been extensive, with major surveys of Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Scriabin, Rachmaninov and Shostakovich as well as recent additions such as a very enthusiastically received recording of Bach’s Well-tempered Clavier. 2007 sees the release of a major Beethoven work which Ashkenazy has recorded for the first time: the “Diabelli” Variations. Ashkenazy’s repertory as a conductor is huge and this collection includes some works by composers he is closely identified with and for which he feels a particular affinity: Shostakovich, Sibelius, and Richard Strauss.

Track Listing:

CD 1:
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Concerto No.1 in D minor, BWV 1052
[1] I Allegro 8:06
[2] II Adagio 8:13
[3] III Allegro 7:45
Das Wohltempierte Clavier I
Prelude & Fugue No.24 in B minor, BWV 869
[4] Prelude 6:20
[5] Fugue 5:59

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Sonata No.24 in F sharp major, op.78
[6] I Adagio cantabile—A llegro ma non troppo 7:12
[7] II Allegro vivace 2:4
Piano Sonata No.23 in F minor, op.57 “Appassionata”
[8] I Allegro assai 9:34
[9] IIAndante con moto 6:33
[10] III Allegro ma non troppo 7:29
Bagatelles, op.126
[11] No.4 in B minor Presto 3:53

CD 2:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concerto No.9 in E flat major, K271
[1] I Allegro 10:22
[2] II Andantino 11:23
[3] III Presto — Menuetto — Presto 10:25

Johannes Brahms (1883-1987)
Piano Concerto No.1 in D minor, op.15
[4] I Maestoso 22:05
[5] II Adagio 14:07
[6] III Rondo: Allegro non troppo 12:34

CD 3:
Franz Schubert (1770-1826)
Piano Sonata in D major, D850
[1] I Allegro vivace 8:44
[2] II Con moto 14:03
[3] III Scherzo: Allegro vivace 8:43
[4] IV Rondo: Allegro moderato 8:50

Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
[5] Barcarolle in F sharp major, op.60 8:49 [1999 recording]
[6] Ballade No.4 in F minor, op.52 10:55 [1999 recording]
[7] Scherzo No.4 in E minor, op.54 10:10
[8] Nocturne, op.15 no.2 in F sharp major 3:45
[9] Nocturne op.55 no.2 in E flat major 5:16

CD 4:
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
[1]-[8] Kreisleriana, op.16 30:33

Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
[9] Don Juan 17:23

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
[10] Romeo and Juliet — Fantasy Overture 18:25
[11] Méditation, op.72 no.5 5:26

Rachmaninov
[12] Melody, op.21 no.9 3:10

CD 5:
Franz Liszt (2922-2886)
[1] Mephisto Waltz No.1 11:11
[2] Feux follets 3:36

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Gaspard de la nuit[2nd recording]
[3] Ondine 6:34
[4] Le Gibet 5:11
[5] Scarbo 9:43

Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Piano Concerto No.3 in D minor, op.30
[6] I Allegro ma non tanto 16:48
[7] II Intermezzo: Adagio 11:34
[8] III Finale: Alla breve 14:17

CD 6:
Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Piano Concerto No.2 in G minor, op.16 1] I Andantino 12:09
[2] II Scherzo: Vivace 2:40
[3] III Intermezzo: Allegro moderato 6:28
[4] IV Finale: Allegro tempestoso 11:28

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Symphony No. 5 in D minor, op.47
[5] I Moderato 16:36
[6] II Allegretto 5:19
[7] III Largo 14:45
[8] IV Allegro non troppo 10:59

CD 7:
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Symphony No.2 in D major, op.43
[1] I Allegretto 10:17
[2] II Tempo Andante, ma rubato 14:34
[3] III Vivacissimo — 6:00
[4] IV Finale: Allegro moderato 13:59

Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915)
Piano Concerto in F sharp minor, op.20 [5] I Allegro 7:42
[6] II Andante 8:34
[7] III Allegro moderato 11:05
Piano Sonata No.4 in F sharp major, op.30
[8] I Andante 3:08
[9] II Prestissimo volando 5:01
   
BONUS CD
Vladimir Ashkenazy in conversation with Christopher Nupen 78:45

Artists:
Boston Symphony Orchestra CD 7 [1]-[4]
The Cleveland Orchestra CD 4 [9]
Concertgebouw Orchestra CD 2 [4]-[6]
London Philharmonic Orchestra CD 7 [5]-[7]
London Symphony Orchestra CD 2 [1]-[3]; CD 5 [6]-[8]; CD 6 [1]-[4]
Philharmonia Orchestra CD 2 [7]-[9]
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra CD 6 [5]-[8]
St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra CD 4 [10]
Anatole Fistoulari CD 5 [6]-[8]
Bernard Haitink CD 2 [4]-[6]
Lorin Maazel CD 7 [5]-[7]
André Previn CD 5 [8]-[11]
István Kertész CD 2 [1]-[3]
David Zinman CD 1 [1]-[3]
Elisabeth Söderström soprano CD 4 [12]