A racing game soundtrack performed by one of the most famous classical pianists alive. Kazunori Yamauchi's vision for Gran Turismo 5 included hiring Lang Lang to record solo piano renditions of classical masterworks, and the sheer audacity of the idea is matched by the execution.
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This is a PS3 racing game with Liszt's "Liebestraum No.1" playing over menu screens. Chopin's Etude Op.10 No.3 and the "Military Polonaise" get the full Lang Lang treatment, technically dazzling but never cold. Bach's "Air on the G String" becomes this meditative interlude between races.
Holst's "Jupiter" is compressed down to piano alone and still manages to feel massive. The inclusion of Joplin's "The Entertainer" alongside Prokofiev's brutal Piano Sonata No.7 shows the range Yamauchi was going for. Beethoven's "Tempest" sonata and Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" round out what is essentially a classical piano recital album that shipped inside a racing game.
It's the kind of move that only Gran Turismo would attempt, treating cars and classical music as equally worthy of reverence.