”The sort of musical talent Zoltán Kocsis displays is something we’re blessed with maybe once or twice a century. It is a priceless treasure that we should take good care of!” – writes György Kroó, an influential music critic of his time on 21 March 1970 about the then 18-year-old young musician. The quotation clearly illustrates the extent of professional interest in Kocsis’ achievements already in the early days of his career, and the expectations kept rising only to put a heavy burden and responsibility on the pianist. Many others have been seen to collapse under such pressure. A large number of young competition-winning talents – even prodigies – tend to disappear after a few years and fail to embark upon the career their talent would have destine them to pursue. Only a handful of them can keep up consistent and conscientious work and live up to the high expectations. From this perspective as well,Kocsis boasted an unprecedented career: during the 46 and a half years that elapsed between his first Beethoven competition and his painfully premature death, his record of achievement was unparalleled fulfilling every hope and prophecy – and even beyond. Besides his glittering career as a pianist in domestic and international concert halls, he also created a lasting and momentous legacy as a conductor, composer, orchestrator, director and remained a committed individual and public figure with a strong presence on Hungary’s musical scene.