The Complete Vladimir de Pachmann CDR (NO PRINTED MATERIALS)

Vladimir de Pachmann (1848-1933), the most controversial of the few pianists alive during Chopin's lifetime who also left recordings, studied piano at the Vienna Conservatory with Joseph Dachs and theory with Bruckner, making his debut in 1869. Soon he heard Tausig, von Bülow, and Rubinstein, stopped performing entirely and locked himself up to practice compulsively. When he emerged ten years later his playing had features of all three, plus a uniquely smooth, pearly quality. He began to appear in public again in 1882, just about the time when he met Liszt, whose personality and playing became the greatest influence in his life. Always high-strung, he gradually discovered that if he talked to his audiences, his stage fright lessened. The public adored his Chopin, which frustrated him, for he wanted to play Beethoven also. Within a few years he gave in to public demand and became the number one Chopin specialist of all time. Concurrently his platform behavior evolved into a kind of show