But--and Levin is likely to find this praise more infuriating than any criticism--had he chosen to play his Emperor  on a Steinway or a Bosendorfer, he might have given us one of the greatest recordings of the piece ever put on disc.
Levin is likely to find this praise the greatest compliment he has ever received. 
mnli hypothesis: Levin is likely to find this praise the greatest compliment he has ever received.  premise: But--and Levin is likely to find this praise more infuriating than any criticism--had he chosen to play his Emperor  on a Steinway or a Bosendorfer, he might have given us one of the greatest recordings of the piece ever put on disc.