Gilels, Reiner – Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1- The Nutcracker (Excerpts) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Living Stereo / RCA Victor Audio CD 1997 / 09026 68530 2

UPC 090266853021

Emil Grigoryevich Gilels (Ukrainian: Емі́ль Григо́рович Гі́лельс; 19 October 1916 – 14 October 1985) was a Soviet pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time.

Frederick Martin "Fritz" Reiner (December 19, 1888 – November 15, 1963) was a prominent conductor of opera and symphonic music in the twentieth century. Hungarian born and trained, he emigrated to the United States in 1922, where he rose to prominence as a conductor with several orchestras. He reached the pinnacle of his career while music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the 1950s and early 1960s.

The Piano Concerto No. 1 in B♭ minor, Op. 23, was composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky between November 1874 and February 1875. It was revised in the summer of 1879 and again in December 1888. The first version received heavy criticism from Nikolai Rubinstein, Tchaikovsky's desired pianist. Rubinstein later withdrew his accusations and became a fervent champion of the work. It is one of the most popular of Tchaikovsky's compositions and among the best known of all piano concertos.