• One of the outstanding pianists of his generation, Evgeny Kissin made relatively few recordings with Deutsche Grammophon in the late Eighties and early Nineties - and almost all of them have been put together in this super twofer!

• CD1 is a solo CD, starting with marvellous interpretations of famous Schubert lieder in the arrangements Franz Liszt, inlcuding two that are new to CD (taken from a video recording of 1991) - an astoundinjgly virtuosic Erlkönig and a delightful Forelle (The Trout), which has never been released before in any format.

• These are followed up by Fantasies - giving the CD its just title - Schubert's Wanderer and the set of seven by Brahms. Liszt's rousing Twelfth Hungarian Rhapsody rounds off the first half of the programme

• CD 2 has two works with orchestra, starting with the unique Kissin / Karajan combination on Tchaikovsky no. 1, in which the tensions betwen soloist and conductor are fascinating to hear; followed by a delightful spruce rendering of the Beethoven Choral Fantasy, live from a New Year's Eve concert in Berlin with Claudio Abbado

• In betwen the two orchestral works are two lovely encores - the Bach Siciliano and Gluck's Dance of the Blessed Spirits - exquisitely rendered by the 20-year-old Russian genius

CD 1
79’48

SCHUBERT arr. LISZT
1 Auf dem Wasser zu singen 3’52
2 Der Müller und der Bach 6’14
3 Ständchen (Horche, die Lerche im Ätherbau) 2’38
4 Gretchen am Spinnenrade 3’53
5 Erlkönig* 4’03
6 Die Forelle* 3’01
*FIRST RELEASES ON CD

SCHUBERT
7 - 10 "Wanderer" Fantasy D 760 21’37

BRAHMS
11 – 17 Fantasien op. 116 24’33

LISZT
18 Hungarian Rhapsody no.12 in C sharp minor 9’57

CD 2
68’54

TCHAIKOVSKY
1 - 3 Piano Concerto no. 1 in B flat minor op.23 39’49
Berliner Philharmoniker
Herbert von Karajan
Ex 427 485-2 tr. 1 – 3 (P ) 1989
Live recording
Deutsche Grammophon recording for a Telemondial videoproduction
The Berliner Philharmoniker appear by kind permission of EMI Records Ltd

J.S. BACH
4 Siciliana (BWV 1031)* 4’25 *FIRST RELEASE ON CD

BEETHOVEN
5 Choral Fantasy op. 80 18’44
RIAS Chorus
Berliner Philharmoniker
Claudio Abbado (live: Silvester Concert 1991)
Ex 435 617-2, tr. 12 (P) 1992

GLUCK
6 Dance of the Blessed Spirits (Reigen seliger Geister)* 5’56
*FIRST RELEASE ON CD