When I was young an individual kindly gifted me a lifetime of treasured recordings exemplifying human creativity and expression. The following serve as a continuation of that effort with the aim to inspire others, perhaps while contemplating a theory.


Shlomo Mintz performs Paganini's 5th Caprice.


Alexander Markov plays Paganini's 24th Caprice.


Yuja Wang plays Scriabin's Op. 8 No. 9.


The performance of Barenboim and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra playing Tchaikovsky's 4th Symphony (finale).


Ivo Pogolerich's performance of Chopin's 2nd Ballade live from the Chopin competition. His elimination from the competition led Martha Argerich to resign as a judge.


Valentina Lisitsa plays Czerny's Variations sur la Valse du Desir (Op 12).


An introduction to master pianist Simon Barere.


Isabelle Moretti performs Alphonse Hasselman's La Source. The segment stems from Jean-Francois Zygel's la boite de musique.


Rafael Orozco performs the 'Ossia' cadenza from the 1st movement of Rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concerto, live at the Prague Spring Festival.


Ivo Pogolerich plays Chopin's Polonaise Op. 44, live at the Chopin Competition.


Kleiber conducting Weber's Der Freischutz Overture.


Yamashita plays his own transcription of Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2.


"If Art Tatum took up classical music I'd quit the next day." - Vladimir Horowitz


Denis Matsuev plays the finale of Rachmaninoff's 2nd piano sonata.


Denis Matsuev plays Ginzburg's Fantasy on a theme from Rossini's "Il Barbiere di Siviglia"


Phineas Newborn Jr. dabbles in Ravel's Sonatine 2nd mvmt (Lush Life by Billy Strayhorn).


Cziffra plays Liszt's Polonaise No. 1.


Volodos plays Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 13.


Khatia Buniatishvili plays Chopin's 1st piano concerto (2 mvmt).


Andre Watts plays Paganini-Liszt Grande Etude No. 6 (live, Tokyo)


Canadian Leila Josefowicz plays Vieuxtemps' fifth concerto.


Jimmy Rosenberg and Andreas Oberg play Limehouse Blues. Produced by Jon Larsen, who authored a wonderful book on micrometeorites.


Francesco Libetta plays Alkan's Grande sonate "20 ans".


Cziffra plays Liszt's Polonaise No. 2.


David Oistrakh plays Shostakovich's violin concerto (excerpt).


Cziffra plays Dohnanyi's Etude Op 28 No 6.


Gould plays the fugue from Beethoven's Sonata No 31.


Yin Chenzong plays the 3rd mvmt from the Yellow River concerto.


HJ Lim plays a movement from Beethoven's Les Adieux piano sonata.


The amazing Cecil Taylor.


Yi-Chung Huang performs Liszt's Reminiscences de Lucrezia Borgia.


Gould and Menuhin play Beethoven's Spring Sonata - 2 mvmt (Yehudi's favorite movement).