MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto Nos 1 & 3

Pianist Peter Katin died on 19 March 2015 at the age of 84. He was born in London in 1930, and by the time he was twelve he was a student at the Royal Academy of Music. He made his professional debut in Wigmore Hall six years later. Early in his career, he was particularly admired for his performances of works from the Classical era, but he caused a sensation in 1953 when he performed Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 3. (One reviewer wrote, 'The young English pianist was greeted, after this breathtaking display, with the hearty and prolonged applause that we generally confine to established public idols.') The Rachmaninov recordings reissued here date from 1958 (Concerto No. 1) and 1959 (Concerto No. 2). In addition to Katin's virtuosity, they feature intelligent conducting from Sir Adrian Boult and Sir Colin Davis, and engineering which is almost as impressive today as it was more than five decades ago.

Recorded 1971 (No 1) 1975 (No 3)