Richter Russian

In my opinion, Sviatoslav Richter played these two Russian monuments better than anyone else on record. However, he played them even better in concert than he did in these excellent studio recordings. The ultimate Richter Pictures (the 1958 Sofia version on Philips) keeps bouncing in and out of print, but it's currently available and it's the great Pictures performance of all time. However you hear Richter play these two pieces, though, do hear him. He will probably convince you, at least while you're listening, that the Tchaikovsky is a much better piece than most musicologists seem to believe.

Sviatoslav Richters first North American tour in 1960 solidified his international standing as one of the 20th centurys most exciting, provocative and original Russian pianists. His Carnegie Hall debut consisted of five sold-out recitals within twelve days in October, with two recitals added in December. The complete recordings from these concerts - previously only available in two separate editions Sviatoslav Richter - The Complete Album Collection and Great Moments at Carnegie Hall - are gathered together for the first time in one collection of thirteen CDs in a slipcase box including a booklet with archival photos and a new essay by Carnegie Hall archivist Gino Francesconi.

This disc has two strikes against it. It's a reissue and it's a mash-up of excerpts from various collections of short pieces, which means that the composer's original intentions are violated. But those two strikes hardly matter when the performer hits a home run with every piece. Russian pianist Sviatoslav Richter, through the sheer strength of his virtuosity, sensitivity, intensity, and poetry transforms this disparate collection of Rachmaninov's Études-tableaux, Opp. 33 and 39, and his Preludes, Opp. 23 and 32, into a cogent and compelling artistic statement.

The Franck Piano Quintet is a performance of immense ardour and vigour, in which the players luxuriate in the lushness and melodic wealth of the composer’s writing. It’s a reading of emotional urgency that certainly packs a punch. Rarely have I heard such heartfelt passion and drama. The wistful calm and autumnal glow of the slow movement is spellbinding, and provides a contrast to the more heated and intense outer movements. Ideal balance between piano and strings adds to the overwhelming success of the performance.

Back in the '50s and '60s when RCA was one of the two dominant American classical record companies, the big debate was over which of their two recordings of Brahms Piano Concerto in B flat major was better: the Emil Gilels with Fritz Reiner from 1958 or the Sviatoslav Richter with Leinsdorf from 1960. Both are with the Chicago Symphony at the peak of its strength and sensitivity.

The air on Mt. Olympus must have been something like that in Berlin’s Jesus-Christus-Kirche when, in September 1969, the threesome of Richter, Oistrakh and Rostropovich joined Herbert von Karajan for this majestic recording of Beethoven’s underrated Triple Concerto. That there could have been such a meeting of the minds in this gathering of greats is difficult to believe, until one remembers that the three soloists were frequent collaborators who all spoke the same musical language, and after years in the trenches knew each other and their conductor very well. As one would expect, the solo work of the three Russians is brilliant and deeply musical. But just as delightful is the way they adjust from solo to ensemble roles and play together, with perfect unanimity, in the duet and trio passages. Karajan and the Berliners provide a monumental accompaniment, weighty, powerful, and rich in tone. The recording, one of the best from EMI in this venue, has been remastered in exemplary fashion and is impressively detailed and vivid.

Newly reissued on CD, Denon Classics presents this specially budget-priced album featuring the legendary Russian pianist performing a live concert program of three Beethoven sonatas, which have been out of print and unavailable at retail. In these 1960s-era recordings, Richter is one with the heroic spirit gathering in Beethoven's development of the sonata form, bringing to it the interpretive power that only Richter could. Richter's Beethoven performances always have the incomparable urgency amd the transcendental quality no pianists nowadays are able to produce.

Richter on the road in Tours France, with no studio in sight, and with a great Russian string quartet in a live performance. This enterprise in thoroughly inspired. Good tempi throughout and nothing drags. There is great interplay between Richter and the Borodins. They milk the lyrical content of the first movement and build the finale to its electrifying finale.