The Complete Studio Recordings

The French pianist Samson François died 50 years ago, on 22 October 1970, at the age of just 46. A brilliant, inspired pianist especially identified with the music of Chopin, Debussy and Ravel, he played with both the proverbial clarity of the French school and a visceral immediacy and spontaneity.

Charismatic, sometimes provocative, and numbering jazz among his passions, Samson François achieved celebrity status, notably in France and Japan. He said that a pianist "should never sound under any obligation to play the next note," or feel constrained by barlines. Gramophone magazine has described his playing as "alive with personal magic" and sharing "every imaginative possibility".

The works of Chopin are prominent in this 54-CD and 1-DVD collection, but the complete list of composers is richly diverse. Among its special features are: the world premiere release of François' penultimate live recital, recorded just four months before his death at the Nohant Festival in France; a recital recorded in Tokyo in 1969, and a DVD documentary, written by his son, Maximilien François.