“Until January 2004, when he announced his retirement from the concert platform on grounds of ill-health, Lazar Berman played and recorded tirelessly, releasing studio and live performances that soon built up a discography of considerable dimensions. His concerto recordings include fabled accounts of the Rachmaninov Third (with Leonard Bernstein) and Tchaikovsky First (Herbert von Karajan). In an age obsessed with firework virtuosity Lazar Berman brought the requisite flawless technique – but one informed with a powerful Romantic urge. It was a deliberate reaction.”