A prolific composer, Dmitri Kabalevsky (1904-1987) wrote four piano concerti, three piano sonatas, four symphonies, five operas, a violin concerto, two cello concerti, songs and other works, including many pieces for piano. Born in St Petersburg, Kabalevsky moved to Moscow when he was fourteen where he studied at the Scriabin Musical Institute. He was a pianist, a composer and a keen painter. In 1925, at the age of twenty-one, he entered the Moscow Conservatory to study composition with Nikolai Myaskovsky and piano with Alexander Goldenweiser.

Kabalevsky later taught composition at the Moscow Conservatory. He was a founding member of the Union of Soviet Composers and the editor of their magazine 'Soviet Music'. Kabalevsky was well regarded by the Soviet establishment and was one of the most powerful figures in Soviet musical life, promoting Social Realism in music and involved in shaping the Soviet system of musical education.

Kirsten Johnson has made her name recording undiscovered corners of the classical piano repertoire. A highly skilled pianist with great musical depth, she has made many world premiere recordings and has received rave reviews internationally, with her albums broadcast around the world. Born in the USA, Kirsten has resided in the UK since 1994. She completed her Doctor of Musical Arts in piano performance at the University of Missouri with a Kemper Doctoral Fellowship, and undertook further studies in Vienna under a Rotary International Foundation Scholarship.