Before getting down to the business end of studio projects, Mikhail Pletnev likes to play pieces "once from memory to myself in order to familiarise myself with the instrument." Not the pieces he's actually there to record, mind you. They come later. So the recordings offered here (Beethoven's Sonata in A, Op No 2, the Bach/Busoni Chaconne, two Schubert Impromptus, Tchaikovsky's November and Nocturne, and the Chopin/Liszt A Maiden's Wish, taped between 1996 and 2005) were not intended for publication. They're also, says Pletnev, are "not free from defects," although he has authorised their release. This disc offers a fascinating behind-the-scenes peek at an awesomely gifted player in unbuttoned mode. url.ie/dzi7