Vladimir Horowitz

Vladimir Horowitz's piano recital in 1982 at Royal Festival Hall in London.

A stimulating study which features concert footage and interviews with the master pianist. Includes many of his favorite pieces.

In March 1987, pianist Vladimir Horowitz embarked on an extraordinary project. For the first time in 35 years, he agreed to record with a symphony orchestra in a studio. He chose the conductor, Carlo Maria Giulini, the orchestra, the La Scala Philharmonic, and the location, the Abanella recording studio of La Scala in Milan. Horowitz steadfastly refused to allow the month-long sessions to be filmed, until the evening before the last scheduled session when he unexpectedly changed his mind. His manager, Peter Gelb, immediately telephoned Albert Maysles and Susan Froemke in New York, the co-filmmakers of "Vladimir Horowitz: The Last Romantic." That same night, the Maysles film crew flew from New York.

Vladimir Horowitz's piano recital in 1987 at the Musikvereinssaal in Vienna.

A recording of Horowitz's historic 1986 recital in Moscow, the program also includes highlights of his return to his native Soviet Union--his first visit in 61 years.

This is a work I created in 1991 as an attempt to become a "master" on "Yuji Miyake's Shrimp-Bending Master Heaven." Unfortunately, the show ended before I could take on the challenge. It was a fun year that taught me the obvious truth: the meaning of a work lies not in leaving it as it is, but in showing it to an audience. I'm grateful to all the staff and performers.