Alto is proud to present landmark recordings of Tchaikovsky masterworks from two legendary Russian pianists, Emil Gilels and Tatiana Nikolayeva with the USSR State Symphony under the direction of the great Kirill Kondrashin.
This new production features Emil Gilels in Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in a live recording from 1962, first issued by Musica on LP, and Tatiana Nikolayeva in the Concert Fantasia in G Minor, Op. 56 from Melodiya’s 1952 Moscow recordings. Both have been lovingly re-mastered and restored for Alto from the original sources by engineer Paul Arden-Taylor.
“An energetic presentation of Russian classical piano artistry at its finest.” –Gary Lemco, Audiophile Audition
“…two of the great Soviet-era pianists playing Tchaikovsky in Moscow with the USSR State Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kirill Kondrashin, is a formidable combination.” Andrew McGregor, BBC Music Magazine, Dec 2025
“Gilels elected to play the Siloti version of the 2nd concerto … his playing is of the highest order of mastery and has the virtue of presenting the work with the freshness of a new discovery” —Penguin Guide on Gilels’ Piano Concerto No. 2
“playing of an awe-inspiring musical strength and integrity. The massive cadenza in the Concert Fantasia played with all-Russian conviction … throughout, she inflects Tchaikovsky’s sumptuously decorated melodies with a warmth and breadth known to few pianists outside Russia” —Gramophone on Nikolayeva’s Concert Fantasia
