Although Chopin’s Piano Concerto no.1 in E minor was the first of his two concertos to be published, it was actually composed shortly after no.2. Stirring, beautiful and with a fiery Rondo finale, the concerto is especially notable for its radiant slow movement, which Chopin said was a ‘meditation in beautiful spring weather, but by moonlight.’ The other two works on the programme are the Fantasy on Polish Airs, which Chopin called his ‘Potpourri on Polish Themes’, and the Andante spianato and Grande Polonaise brillante, a dance-inspired showpiece. They’re performed in this classic 1972 VOX recording by Abbey Simon, the great American pianist and eloquent exponent of Chopin’s works.

Abbey Simon (1920–2019), a protégé of Josef Hofmann at the Curtis Institute of Music and winner of the Naumburg International Piano Competition in 1940, was praised as a ‘supervirtuoso’ by critic Harold C. Schonberg of the New York Times. Despite living to the age of 99, just a few weeks short of 100, Simon's exceptional talent and virtuosity left an indelible mark on the world of music.

The Elite Recordings for VOX by legendary producers Marc Aubort and Joanna Nickrenz are considered by audiophiles to be amongst the finest sounding examples of orchestral recordings.

This VOX Audiophile Edition was first released on vinyl in 1983 as SVBX 5126.

‘Simon plays them all as though they were first-class material, and his interpretative style is enlivening… Simon's performances can’t be beat.’ – The New York Times