Valentina Lisitsa loves Bach and Rachmaninoff. It would only stand to reason that she would find cats which are music lovers, too!
Her love for Bach came early, while Rachmaninoff was an acquired taste, which is surprising for a pianist born in the Ukraine.
"His playing ... is the most elegant, aristocratic. He produces the most wonderful sound sonorities. It is the difference between cats playing this concerto and a dog playing it. There is not too much saliva and jumping all around. It is catlike."
Lisitsa has a personal connection to Rachmaninoff and his music. She, too, immigrated to the United States, where she became a citizen. She now lives in rural North Carolina, sharing a large house with her husband (Alexei Kuznetsoff, also a pianist and her frequent recital partner), their young son, her mother, and pet cats Kitty-Cat, a black Siamese, and Buffy, a shelter rescue.
She and her feline friends apparently often practice together, as you'll see in this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAQu2LZIeaQ
Lisitsa even interviewed a cat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyDuLPwI-YY