Richter Edition

Record and Artist Details

Composer or Director: Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, Alexander Scriabin, Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov, Camille Saint-Saëns, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, César Franck, Sergey Rachmaninov, Sergey Prokofiev, Fryderyk Chopin, Béla Bartók, Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach, Nikolay Myaskovsky, Modest Mussorgsky

Label: Melodiya

Magazine Review Date: 6/1996

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 678

Mastering:

Mono
ADD

Catalogue Number: 74321 29460-2

Tracks:

Composition	Artist Credit
(3) Pieces, Movement: No. 1, Etude in C sharp minor	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes, Movement: No. 5 in E	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes, Movement: No. 11 in B flat minor	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 2 in F sharp minor	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 3 in F sharp minor	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 4 in F sharp	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 5 in C sharp minor	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 6 in D flat	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 8 in E flat	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(3) Etudes	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 6	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 3	Nikolay Myaskovsky, Composer Nikolay Myaskovsky, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 7	Sergey Prokofiev, Composer Sergey Prokofiev, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Evgeni Svetlanov, Conductor Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano USSR Symphony Orchestra
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 5, 'Egyptian'	Camille Saint-Saëns, Composer Camille Saint-Saëns, Composer Kyrill Kondrashin, Conductor Moscow Youth Symphony Orchestra Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(Les) Djinns	César Franck, Composer César Franck, Composer Kyrill Kondrashin, Conductor Moscow Youth Symphony Orchestra Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Kurt Sanderling, Conductor Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano USSR Radio Symphony Orchestra
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 3 in F	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 5 in C	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 2 in C	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 7 in C	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 9 in A minor	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 1 in G	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 4 in B minor	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 6 in E flat	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 8, 'Pathétique'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 23, 'Appassionata'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Fantasia for Piano, Chorus and Orchestra	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Kurt Sanderling, Conductor Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra Russian State Academic Choir Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 1, Des Abends	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 2, Aufschwung	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 3, Warum?	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 5, In der Nacht	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 7, Traumes Wirren	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 8, Ende von Lied	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Humoreske	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Novelletten, Movement: No. 1 in F	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Novelletten, Movement: No. 2 in D	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Novelletten, Movement: No. 8 in F sharp minor	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(6) Moments musicaux, Movement: No. 1 in C	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(6) Moments musicaux, Movement: No. 3 in F minor	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(6) Moments musicaux, Movement: No. 6 in A flat	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Impromptus, Movement: No. 2 in A flat	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: E, Op. 10/3	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: E minor, Op. 25/5	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(16) Polonaises, Movement: No. 1 in C sharp minor, Op. 26/1	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Prélude, choral et fugue	César Franck, Composer César Franck, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(15) Hungarian Peasant Songs	Béla Bartók, Composer Béla Bartók, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(6) English Suites, Movement: No. 3 in G minor, BWV808	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Concerto for Harpsichord and Strings	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Kurt Sanderling, Conductor Sviatoslav Richter, Piano USSR Symphony Orchestra
(3) Concertos for Two Harpsichords and Strings, Movement: No. 2 in C, BWV1061	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Anatoly Vedernikov, Piano Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Moscow Chamber Orchestra Rudolf Barshai, Conductor Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 16	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 17	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra	Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, Composer Kyrill Kondrashin, Conductor Moscow Youth Symphony Orchestra Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano	Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Pictures at an Exhibition	Modest Mussorgsky, Composer Modest Mussorgsky, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano

Composer or Director: Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert, Sergey Rachmaninov, Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Robert Schumann, Joseph Haydn, Johannes Brahms, Alexander Scriabin, Maurice Ravel, Fryderyk Chopin, Carl Maria von Weber, Modest Mussorgsky

Label: Praga

Magazine Review Date: 6/1996

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 100

Mastering:

Stereo
Mono
ADD

Catalogue Number: CMX354001/15

Tracks:

Composition	Artist Credit
Sonata for Piano No. 3	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 7	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 12	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 17, 'Tempest'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 18, 'Hunt'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 23, 'Appassionata'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 27	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 28	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 29, 'Hammerklavier'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 31	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(33) Variations in C on a Waltz by Diabelli, 'Diabelli Variations'	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Bretislav Bakala, Conductor Brno State Philharmonic Orchestra Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 3	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Bretislav Bakala, Conductor Brno State Philharmonic Orchestra Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 1	Johannes Brahms, Composer Johannes Brahms, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 2	Johannes Brahms, Composer Johannes Brahms, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Variations on a Hungarian song	Johannes Brahms, Composer Johannes Brahms, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: C sharp minor, Op. 10/4	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: A flat, Op. 10/10	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: E flat, Op. 10/11	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: E minor, Op. 25/5	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: D flat, Op. 25/8	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: A minor, 'Winter Wind', Op. 25/11	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: C minor, Op. 25/12	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Nocturnes, Movement: No. 18 in E, Op. 62/2	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Nocturnes, Movement: No. 19 in E minor, Op. 72/1	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(16) Polonaises, Movement: No. 7 in A flat, Op. 61, 'Polonaise-fantaisie'	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 2, 'Sonata-fantasy'	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 5	Alexander Scriabin, Composer Alexander Scriabin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(2) Rondos	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 1 in G	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 4 in B minor	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 6 in E flat	Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Ludwig van Beethoven, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: C, Op. 10/1	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: A minor, Op. 10/2	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: E, Op. 10/3	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: C minor, 'Revolutionary', Op. 10/12	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: G sharp minor, Op. 25/6	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(27) Etudes, Movement: C sharp minor, Op. 25/7	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(4) Ballades	Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Fryderyk Chopin, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 1, Preludio	Franz Liszt, Composer Franz Liszt, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 2, Fusées	Franz Liszt, Composer Franz Liszt, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 3, Paysage	Franz Liszt, Composer Franz Liszt, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 5, Feux follets	Franz Liszt, Composer Franz Liszt, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 11, Harmonies du soir	Franz Liszt, Composer Franz Liszt, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Miroirs	Maurice Ravel, Composer Maurice Ravel, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(8) Valses nobles et sentimentales	Maurice Ravel, Composer Maurice Ravel, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Keyboard No. 39	Joseph Haydn, Composer Joseph Haydn, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 4	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer
Sonata for Piano No. 8	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer
Sonata for Piano No. 13	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer
Sonata for Piano No. 15	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer
Sonata for Piano No. 16	Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Composer
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 5 in D minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 6 in E flat minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 9 in C sharp minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 1 in C minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 2 in A minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 3 in F sharp minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 4 in B minor	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 9 in D	Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sergey Rachmaninov, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Pictures at an Exhibition	Modest Mussorgsky, Composer Modest Mussorgsky, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 17	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Sonata for Piano No. 21	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Impromptus, Movement: No. 3 in G flat	Franz Schubert, Composer Franz Schubert, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
(2) Polonaises, Movement: No. 2 in E	Franz Liszt, Composer Franz Liszt, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Etudes symphoniques, 'Symphonic Studies'	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano
Fantasie	Robert Schumann, Composer Robert Schumann, Composer Sviatoslav Richter, Piano

Author:

Excuse me if this sounds un-British, but I have to say that my soul took wing in the course of listening to these discs: not absolutely all the time, which is just as well, as ordinary life still had to be led, but sufficiently often that I started to look forward to the experience as the focal point of the day, and that if I were not in the privileged position of reviewer I would be seriously considering buying both sets.
Anyone contemplating taking that plunge will want to know how these compilations differ from the Richter retrospectives on DG (various single and double discs), Decca (3/93), EMI (3/93), Olympia (1/94 and 4/94) and Philips (8/94). The DG and EMI issues, it may be recalled, date largely from the early 1960s, the time of Richter’s breakthrough in the West, through to the mid 1970s, years when his playing was at its awesome apogee. The others are more up-to-date, but the gains in terms of recording quality are inconsistent and sometimes offset by increasing rigidity in technique. The new Melodiya set comes from Russian recordings from the late 1940s to the early 1960s in a fascinating mix of live and studio recordings; Richter’s interpretations in these years had an elemental power and unselfconscious abandon that was refined and tempered in later life. The repertoire on the rival Praga set is more conservative. But these entirely unedited performances, given over more than three decades from the mid 1950s to late 1980s, feel not only live but somehow extraordinarily real. Not that Richter ever gives the impression of playing for the microphone, and his vision of musical structures remains constant whether he is in the studio or the concert-hall. Nevertheless the atmosphere within which that vision is realized differs from venue to venue, and in Prague it seems to have been extraordinarily conducive.
Having said that, I should mention the general disadvantages. For the Melodiya set the problem is the unreliable 1950s Soviet recording quality, compounded, presumably, by some decay in the master-tapes over the years, and not entirely redeemed by the NoNoise remastering technique (this is less obtrusive than I remember it from the early days, but it still seems to suck some of the life out of the sound). For the Praga set it is again a question of variable recording, the frustration being that some of the most inspiring and well-recorded items are coupled with others that do not meet the most basic criteria for acceptability.
So the boxed sets are probably for ardent Richter devotees only, and as such they have more than enough distinction to commend them. For others it must be a question of selective purchase, which thankfully is possible since all the discs are available separately.

Melodiya Volumes 1-5 (74321 29461/5-2): Unless you want historical documentation of baroque performance practice in the former Soviet Union, I cannot think that the ironclad Bach performances will appeal. Richter’s Beethoven is another matter. BMG’s chatty booklet-notes claim that his live 1960 Moscow Appassionata is his favourite among his recorded performances of the work, and from the elemental power it unleashes I can well believe it; the differences with the Praga account of the same piece from the previous year are marginal, but there a dicey opening flourish sets the tone for a slightly less confident account. The Moscow Pathetique is again magnificently implacable, while the Choral Fantasia is a remarkable curiosity – cavernous acoustic, fierce recording, the text in Russian, sung with intimidating gusto. The Schubert D major Sonata (a studio recording made in 1956) is a tower of inner strength, and again I marginally prefer it to its live Praga counterpart, although a straight choice might depend on the finely chiselled A minor Schubert on Melodiya versus the ebullient Weber Sonata on Praga.
Authentic or not, I like the Arthur Rubinstein anecdote about hearing Richter for the first time, “It really wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. Then at some point I noticed my eyes growing moist: tears began rolling down my cheeks...”. What produces such a reaction cannot be put into words, but I suspect it has to do with Richter’s uncanny ability to convey a sense of inevitability. In Schumann, for instance, Richter takes characterization and virtuosity in his stride and aims at the emotional truth beyond. Impetuosity and fantasy are there, but at the structural level rather than in the detail. The simplicity of his Humoreske gets to the heart of the matter as unerringly as the elan of his Fantasiestucke and the tensed steel of his Novelettes. The miscellaneous disc is too generally severe for my taste, but I’m glad to have heard the fast and scary Chopin E minor Study, the glorious conclusion to the Franck Prelude, choral et fugue, and the noble account of the Bartok Peasant Songs.
Volumes 6-10 (74321 29466/70-2): On the concerto discs the Rachmaninov No. 1 is close to a must for its titanic strength and airborne agility, and No. 2 is only dispensable because he surpassed it in his classic DG account (7/95). The Chopin No. 2 is unceremonious to a fault and an object-lesson in how little rubato Chopin’s arabesques actually need in order to make their point; its couplings show how facile music can reveal substance in the hands of a master performer, though as recorded in 1956 the Moscow Youth Orchestra rather take the plaster off the ceiling in the Franck. Woeful orchestral intonation, clangy piano and distant recording make the Rimsky-Korsakov, Glazunov and Prokofiev concertos, respectively, frustrating experiences.
The blend of German and Russian backgrounds must also have something to do with the unique power of Richter at his best. Certainly that comes across in the tempering of rhetoric with structural insight which elevates the Tchaikovsky Sonata beyond any other performance I know of this unwieldy piece; again Richter’s sweeping panache and volcanic sense of flow make for a colossal Mussorgsky Pictures (Moscow, 1958), far better recorded than the famous, though currently unavailable, live Sofia account. Indispensable, too, is the last Melodiya disc. Here is an other-worldly Scriabin, cataclysmic and elevated, culminating in a vaporous, explosive, ultimately clamorous account of the Sixth Sonata. The Miaskovsky – formulaic Scriabin with an academic safety net – is admittedly better heard on Pyramid (10/92, live from Tours in 1973); from the amount of background noise on Melodiya I thought a babushka with her vacuum cleaner was competing for attention. Finally comes a muscular and emotionally searing Prokofiev Seventh which presents the only serious alternative to Pollini.
Of the Melodiya discs, the most urgent recommendations are Vols. 2 (Beethoven), 4 (Schumann), 9 (Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky) and 10 (Scriabin, Miaskovsky and Prokofiev).

Praga Volumes 1-5 (CMX354001/05): Of the four Beethoven sonata discs the one containing Opp. 90, 101 and 106 is outstanding, though frustratingly the 1965 Hammerklavier has a little memory black-out at 8'20'' in the first movement, without which I sense it might have grown into something even more extraordinary. Also outstanding for their will-power, defiance, and profound mysteries in the spaces between the notes are Op. 2 No. 3, Op. 31 No. 3 and Op. 110. Unfortunately these are all harnessed to some grim recordings (a distant Op. 10 No. 3 and Op. 31 No. 2, a fuzzy Op. 26, and a Diabelli Variations with a jangly broken string from the end of Variation 10 onwards). The two concertos suffer from persistent niggles beyond the soloist’s control – recessed woodwind, dubious orchestral intonation, prominent detuned strings on the piano. They can be heard to greater effect with Kondrashin on Russian Disc (9/94).
Volumes 6-10 (CMX354006/10): The greatest surprise for me here was the Chopin and Scriabin. Chopin Studies were never Richter’s ideal repertoire, as can be heard from the rather unhappy 1960 selection on the Praga disc with the Chopin Ballades and Beethoven Rondos and Bagatelles. But in 1988, when the magisterial technique was starting to fray in some repertoire (the two Brahms sonatas from that year are as strenuous and splashy as on the roughly contemporaneous Decca and Philips sets), he turned in some glorious sustained performances, and his wonderful hall-filling sound is finely captured. Of the Scriabin sonatas, No. 5 is even more daring than on his famous DG recording, and No. 2, which I had thought my least favourite of the cycle, had me hanging on every note. The other revelation is the Liszt/Ravel, not just for the Transcendental Etudes, which are primitively recorded (1956) but pianistically spellbinding, but also for a Miroirs painted in the most hallucinatory, suggestive hues and topped off by a staggering “Alborado”. A crisp and unexaggerated Haydn D major Sonata is unhelpfully coupled with some fuzzily recorded Mozart.
Volumes 11-15 (CMX354011/15): Mostly frustration from here on in, too – more strait-laced Mozart and more fuzzy recordings, then Rachmaninov Etudes-tableaux which would be a top recommendation were they not also available from Olympia (1/94) and if they did not come harnessed to a Mussorgsky Pictures whose recording is so fluttery as to be virtually intolerable. I would be sorry not to hear Richter’s bubbly Weber Sonata again; it is another fine example of his ability to ennoble apparently modest repertoire. But his famous stoical view of the Schubert B flat Sonata can be heard to better advantage on Olympia (1/94) and is not enhanced by the Liszt Polonaise in another impossibly fluttery recording. Similarly the Schumann Etudes symphoniques are better recorded on Olympia (4/94) and the Fantasie on EMI (3/93). But it is certainly good to hear the real-life splashiness of the notorious coda to the second movement of the Fantasie, since it helps to humanize the man. Without that kind of fallibility Richter’s capacity to soar would have no meaning. Nor would he be able to take us soaring with him as inspiringly as he so often does.
The urgent recommendations on Praga are Vols. 3 (late Beethoven), 7 (Chopin, Scriabin) and 9 (Liszt, Ravel).'

Richter Edition

(3) Pieces, Movement: No. 1, Etude in C sharp minor

(12) Etudes, Movement: No. 5 in E

(12) Etudes, Movement: No. 11 in B flat minor

(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 2 in F sharp minor

(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 3 in F sharp minor

(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 4 in F sharp

(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 5 in C sharp minor

(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 6 in D flat

(8) Etudes, Movement: No. 8 in E flat

(3) Etudes

Sonata for Piano No. 6

Sonata for Piano No. 3

Sonata for Piano No. 7

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 2

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 5, 'Egyptian'

(Les) Djinns

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 3 in F

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 5 in C

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 2 in C

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 7 in C

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 9 in A minor

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 1 in G

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 4 in B minor

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 6 in E flat

Sonata for Piano No. 8, 'Pathétique'

Sonata for Piano No. 23, 'Appassionata'

Fantasia for Piano, Chorus and Orchestra

(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 1, Des Abends

(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 2, Aufschwung

(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 3, Warum?

(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 5, In der Nacht

(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 7, Traumes Wirren

(8) Fantasiestücke, Movement: No. 8, Ende von Lied

Humoreske

(8) Novelletten, Movement: No. 1 in F

(8) Novelletten, Movement: No. 2 in D

(8) Novelletten, Movement: No. 8 in F sharp minor

(6) Moments musicaux, Movement: No. 1 in C

(6) Moments musicaux, Movement: No. 3 in F minor

(6) Moments musicaux, Movement: No. 6 in A flat

Impromptus, Movement: No. 2 in A flat

(27) Etudes, Movement: E, Op. 10/3

(27) Etudes, Movement: E minor, Op. 25/5

(16) Polonaises, Movement: No. 1 in C sharp minor, Op. 26/1

Prélude, choral et fugue

(15) Hungarian Peasant Songs

(6) English Suites, Movement: No. 3 in G minor, BWV808

Concerto for Harpsichord and Strings

(3) Concertos for Two Harpsichords and Strings, Movement: No. 2 in C, BWV1061

Sonata for Piano No. 16

Sonata for Piano No. 17

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra

Sonata for Piano

Pictures at an Exhibition

Richter in Prague

Sonata for Piano No. 3

Sonata for Piano No. 7

Sonata for Piano No. 12

Sonata for Piano No. 17, 'Tempest'

Sonata for Piano No. 18, 'Hunt'

Sonata for Piano No. 23, 'Appassionata'

Sonata for Piano No. 27

Sonata for Piano No. 28

Sonata for Piano No. 29, 'Hammerklavier'

Sonata for Piano No. 31

(33) Variations in C on a Waltz by Diabelli, 'Diabelli Variations'

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 3

Sonata for Piano No. 1

Sonata for Piano No. 2

Variations on a Hungarian song

(27) Etudes, Movement: C sharp minor, Op. 10/4

(27) Etudes, Movement: A flat, Op. 10/10

(27) Etudes, Movement: E flat, Op. 10/11

(27) Etudes, Movement: E minor, Op. 25/5

(27) Etudes, Movement: D flat, Op. 25/8

(27) Etudes, Movement: A minor, 'Winter Wind', Op. 25/11

(27) Etudes, Movement: C minor, Op. 25/12

Nocturnes, Movement: No. 18 in E, Op. 62/2

Nocturnes, Movement: No. 19 in E minor, Op. 72/1

(16) Polonaises, Movement: No. 7 in A flat, Op. 61, 'Polonaise-fantaisie'

Sonata for Piano No. 2, 'Sonata-fantasy'

Sonata for Piano No. 5

(2) Rondos

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 1 in G

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 4 in B minor

(26) Bagatelles, Movement: No. 6 in E flat

(27) Etudes, Movement: C, Op. 10/1

(27) Etudes, Movement: A minor, Op. 10/2

(27) Etudes, Movement: E, Op. 10/3

(27) Etudes, Movement: C minor, 'Revolutionary', Op. 10/12

(27) Etudes, Movement: G sharp minor, Op. 25/6

(27) Etudes, Movement: C sharp minor, Op. 25/7

(4) Ballades

(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 1, Preludio

(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 2, Fusées

(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 3, Paysage

(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 5, Feux follets

(12) Etudes d'exécution transcendante, Movement: No. 11, Harmonies du soir

Miroirs

(8) Valses nobles et sentimentales

Sonata for Keyboard No. 39

Sonata for Piano No. 4

Sonata for Piano No. 8

Sonata for Piano No. 13

Sonata for Piano No. 15

Sonata for Piano No. 16

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 5 in D minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 6 in E flat minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 9 in C sharp minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 1 in C minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 2 in A minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 3 in F sharp minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 4 in B minor

(9) Etudes-tableaux, Movement: No. 9 in D

Pictures at an Exhibition

Sonata for Piano No. 17

Sonata for Piano No. 21

Impromptus, Movement: No. 3 in G flat

(2) Polonaises, Movement: No. 2 in E

Etudes symphoniques, 'Symphonic Studies'

Fantasie

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