Vladimir Ashkenazy Essentials

As a star performer who worked during the Cold War, Ashkenazy's international travels were a sometime part of the Soviets' public-facing cultural campaigns. And while his own sympathies were revealed when Ashkenazy managed to secure Icelandic citizenship in the '70s, his advocacy on behalf of the Russian repertoire has never been anything less than authoritative and profound. His early recordings of Rachmaninov's complete piano works are beloved; one of the highlights of his conducting career is a polished, long-in-process cycle of Shostakovich symphonies. In addition to his investigation of other Russians (like Borodin), the balance of Ashkenazy's imposing catalogue is dominated by his approaches to Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann.