After winning the 1960 International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Maurizio Pollini signed an exclusive contract with EMI and recorded two albums dedicated to the Polish composer. Pollini withdrew his approval for the second recording, featuring the Études, during post-production offering no explanation. He eventually granted his approval in 2011. Following the SACD edition released in February - the first to be remastered in high-resolution from the original tapes - this is the first time these performances have been released on LP vinyl.