Since his first concert appearance in 1954, Daniel Barenboim grew steadily as a solo pianist, accompanist, chamber musician, and conductor of opera and orchestral music, until he became one of the major figures of his time, possessing a stature in the public arena that transcends his profession. This double CD from EMI is generous, offering full performances and substantial excerpts from his catalog and delivering a portrait of Barenboim that is well-rounded and relevant to his entire body of work. While there is no selection from Barenboim's legendary performances with cellist Jacqueline du Pré, perhaps the most memorable partnership of his career, the recordings from 1967 to 2005 span his development and present him by himself and in collaboration with other artists. The first disc is devoted entirely to the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Barenboim is heard in all his capacities, performing the Variations for piano on "Les hommes pieusement," the Piano Trio in G major, the Piano Concerto No. 23, as well as conducting the conclusion of Act I of Don Giovanni and the Finale of the "Jupiter" Symphony. The second disc presents music by Ludwig van Beethoven, Georges Bizet, Béla Bartók, Frédéric Chopin, Johannes Brahms, Gabriel Fauré, and Anton Bruckner, which demonstrates the breadth of his repertoire and, like the first CD, his prodigious abilities as an interpreter. The sound quality of this twofer is quite high for most listeners' purposes, though the reproduction varies a little because of the use of analog and digital technologies and the different recording dates and venues.