Richter Plays Schubert

The name of Sviatoslav Richter (1915-1997) appears at the head of virtually everyone’s shortlist of the world’s great pianists. In the West, the legend began, then gathered force, during the 1950s, when it was rumoured that there was a pianist in Russia who caused even such formidable colleagues as Emil Gilels to exclaim in awe and amazement. Expectations were raised still higher when Julius Katchen and later Lazar Berman claimed that Richter was, quite simply, a nonpareil, a pianist whose titanic powers forbade even whispered comparisons.

Richter was always a fan of Schubert's Piano music. He recorded over half of the Sonatas, the Wanderer Fantasie, some of the Impromptus and the Trout Piano Quintet to name a few works. Early in his career he would tear through impromptus, and play the Wander Fantasie with force and power. Fast forward much later at this point when these Sonatas were performed, and Richter was still playing some of the most difficult works in piano repertoire, such as Prokofiev Sonatas, Chopin Etudes and Liszt. In the case of these of composers its hard not to be inclined to be enjoy his earlier recordings more, but that is not the case here with Schubert.

This is a profound, moving, beautifully structured performance. Richter plays with passionate intensity and serene sensitivity. He creates an exquisite balance between the pathos and the longing geniality within the sonatas. I doubt I will ever want another recording of these sonatas. Richter's rendition brilliant. It's as though Schubert wrote these with Richter in mind!

Richter was always a fan of Schubert's Piano music. He recorded over half of the Sonatas, the Wanderer Fantasie, some of the Impromptus and the Trout Piano Quintet to name a few works. Early in his career he would tear through impromptus, and play the Wander Fantasie with force and power. Fast forward much later at this point when these Sonatas were performed, and Richter was still playing some of the most difficult works in piano repertoire, such as Prokofiev Sonatas, Chopin Etudes and Liszt. In the case of these of composers its hard not to be inclined to be enjoy his earlier recordings more, but that is not the case here with Schubert.

Sviatoslav Richter is still regarded by nearly the entire piano community as one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century. Known for the “depth of his interpretations, his virtuoso technique, and his vast repertoire,” many of his recordings are still the benchmark recordings of famous repertoire. The present edition of Richter’s interpretations from 1948 to 1963 even has some premieres to offer, taken from hitherto unreleased live recordings. Special guests on this release include the Borodin Quartet, Nina Dorliac, Mstislav Rostropovich. Profil Edition Günter Hänssler has already released numerous albums featuring Richter’s performances of works by Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert. The recordings that make up this edition are devoted to the composers Schumann, Brahms and Reger.

This is the best recording of both Schumann's and Schubert's fantasies. Perahia plays Schubert Fantasy with such clarity, delicacy and sophistication that Pollini's Wanderer Fantasy sounds flat and bland. (well, all the recordings by early Pollini are super flat without any depth anyways). Richter's Schubert Fantasy is one of the best around, yet Perahia does it with extra flair and depth. Perahia sounds even better with Schumann as his Schumann always sounds impeccable. Perahia gives so much air to the fantasy and the music flows just so naturally. Richter's Schumann sounds a bit too self-indulgent to me.

Pianist Anna Malikova cultivates a big, singing tone and a generous, lyrical style that couldn’t befit Schubert’s “little” A major sonata better. Her impressively even, pearl-like scales and dynamic thrust in the finale, for example, leave Maria João Pires’ recent DG traversal at the starting gate while looking Richter’s reference version squarely in the eye. Her flexible phrasing of the first movement proves every bit as stylish and “echt-Viennese” as Paul Badura-Skoda’s rendition, but with a surer technique. Unlike Richter or András Schiff, Malikova doesn’t repeat the first-movement development and recapitulation, which is just as well.

This is the most beautiful of Mozart playing, his last piano concerto given here by Emil Gilels with total clarity. This is a classic performance, memorably accompanied by the VPO and Böhm. Suffice it to say that Gilels sees everything and exaggerates nothing, that the performance has an Olympian authority and serenity, and that the Larghetto is one of the glories of the gramophone. He's joined by his daughter Elena in the Double Piano Concerto in E flat, and their physical relationship is mirrored in the quality, and the mutual understanding of the playing: both works receive marvellous interpretations. We think Emil plays first, Elena second, but could be quite wrong. The VPO under Karl Böhm is at its best; and so is the quality of recording, with a good stereo separation of the two solo parts, highly desirable in this work.