Today, the piano concertos by Béla Bartók are regarded as works of classic modernism and are considered suitable even for conservative audiences. Musica Viva, the concert series for contemporary music in Munich, included the piano concertos in their program back in 1957, a time when it was by no means a matter of course to hear this music in established concert halls. The man at the piano was one of the greatest of his trade: Géza Anda, a fervent and uncompromising advocate of Bartók's oeuvre, with a further repertoire that encompassed all epochs – his recordings of Mozart's piano concertos are as famous as his interpretations of Schumann, Schubert or Brahms. Throughout his life he devoted himself and his technical skill to the cause of poetical-musical performance and interpretation, far from any tedious virtuosity. He was only 56, and at the peak of his art, when he died of an aggressive form of cancer. Still today his live recordings of Bartók's piano concertos are considered to be among the most impressive examples of his skill, and of Bartók interpretations in general, in spite of the imperfect sound quality.