For those not in the classical know, Martha Argerich is an Argentinian-Swiss pianist, widely regarded as one of the greatest pianists of the second half of the 20th century.

Argerich was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Her paternal ancestors were Catalonians based in Buenos Aires since the 18th century. Her maternal grandparents were Jewish immigrants from the Russian Empire, who settled in Colonia Villa Clara in the Entre Ríos province—one of the colonies established by Baron de Hirsch and the Jewish Colonization Association.

The provenance of the name Argerich is Catalonia, Spain. She started playing the piano at age three. At the age of five, she moved to teacher Vincenzo Scaramuzza, who stressed to her the importance of lyricism and feeling. Argerich gave her debut concert in 1949 at the tender age of just eight.

Here, for the first time in a single box set,entitled Martha Argerich - The Complete Recordings On Deutsche Grammophon are the 48 CDs that make up Martha Argerich's highly impressive recording legacy from 1960 to 2014 with Deutsche Grammophon and Philips; including the four Lugano Concertos CDs and the Chopin CD of 1960s radio recordings.

With this box you can trace Argerich's recording career from early Chopin, the famous Ravel and Prokofiev Concertos disc with Claudio Abbado, through her comprehensive series of chamber-music recordings with Gidon Kremer and Mischa Maisky, to the more recent live outings with Nelson Friere (a long-time partner) and Daniel Barenboim. On the way there is overwhelming Rachmaninov, a scintillating Carnival of the Animals, and many more, trust me.

The design and contents of this Limited Edition 48CD Box-Set is as fascinating as the en mass of tracks themselves found within! It's actually called a "Fricsay-style" box into which has been placed, aside from those CDs, a commissioned great series of sketches of the artist to illustrate and enhance the booklet! [This is actually, upon better inspection, a 150-page booklet with a magnificent series of those aforementioned sketches of the artist by Fred Münzmaier]. With an Introduction to the Edition, a major article on the artist, an Argerich Chronology, and an Index of Works Recorded, PLUS the Original Cover Sleeves on each CD, well, what more could you ask for? I mean seriously, what more?!

Acknowledged the world over as one of the greatest, if not the greatest living pianists, Martha Argerich goes from strength to strength as a performer, and can look back (if she cares to) on a career with DG and Philips that comprises one iconic recording after the other. Her essential legacy is with our two labels.

The Edition, organized chronologically, comprises:
Complete solo recordings, including the Chopin radio recordings from the 1960s
Complete concerto recordings, including the 4 CDs of Lugano Concertos (2012) and the last recording with Claudio Abbado
Complete duo recordings, including last year's sensational Berlin concert with Daniel Barenboim
Complete chamber music recordings

If the solo recordings are relatively few in number each a gem, from Chopin to Ravel and Bach and Schumann her partnerships with the great artists of her time are unrivalled. One only has to think of Claudio Abbado, Nelson Freire, Gidon Kremer and Mischa Maisky, and more recently Daniel Barenboim.

On a foot note, Argerich is president of the International Piano Academy Lake Como and performs each year at the Lugano Festival. She also created and has been General Director of the Argerich Music Festival and Encounter in Beppu, Japan, since 1996. Also, her widely-known aversion to the press and publicity has resulted in her remaining out of the limelight for most of her career. Nevertheless she is widely recognized as one of the greatest pianists of her time. This delightful, well-packed Martha Argerich - Complete Recordings On Deutsche Grammophon 48CD, Limited Edition Box-Set can attest to that, for sure.