Soviet Russia was not known for its jazz tradition – the genre struck Politburo officials as unacceptably American – but there were brave exceptions, and the main one was composer/pianist Nikolai Kapustin (1937-2020). As a composer he utilised traditional classical forms: the concerto, the piano trio, and as we see here the symphony. Mostly his output concentrated on solo piano works that are highly idiomatic in the virtuoso style of Art Tatum and Oscar Peterson. His music is challenging enough to appeal to the likes of Marc-André Hamelin and Benjamin Grosvenor. Young German pianist Frank Dupree dazzles as brilliantly as anyone.

The orchestra plays a minor role in the Piano Concerto No 4, which is completely dominated by piano, bass and drum kit. Kapustin’s harmony is blues based, often reminiscent stylistically of elaborate piano arrangements of Gershwin. Dupree flings his fingers around the piano impressively, loosely enough to produce a genuine jazz feel, but the work’s hybrid structure remains stubbornly episodic. The Double Concerto seems more concentrated to begin with, Kapustin’s string writing showing plenty of rigour, but when the soloists enter it’s...