Sviatoslav Richter
Having learned the fundamentals of music from his father, Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter taught himself the piano and had already given public concerts before entering the Moscow Conservatory in 1937. While still a student, Richter won first prize at the All-Union Contest of Performers of 1945. His playing earned him considerable renown, and by the time of his graduation in 1947 he had devoted fans. In 1949 he garnered the coveted Stalin Prize.
Richter gave the 1942 premiere of Sergey Prokofiev's Piano Sonata No. 6 -- the composer's first work in that form for years, and the first one he did not premiere himself. This resulted in wild acclaim for both performer and composer. Thereafter, Richter was a great proponent of Prokofiev's music, premiering also the Seventh and the Ninth Sonatas, the latter of which is dedicated to him.
Though word of Richter's excellence (and occasional poor-quality recordings) had spread outside of Russia, his foreign engagements were limited to Eastern Bloc countries (and, in one case, China) where Soviet officials felt there was reduced risk of defection. However, his 1958 performance of Prokofiev's Fifth Piano Concerto with the Philadelphia Orchestra (on tour in Leningrad) generated such excitement that he was finally permitted to tour the United States, further bolstering his reputation as a virtuoso. Engagements in all of world's musical centers followed. Richter was known as a pianist of transcendent abilities, particularly adept at highlighting the nuances of different styles. Though his interests focused primarily on music of Beethoven, and Prokofiev, he was also highly regarded for his Schubert, Schumann, Bach, Debussy, and Ravel; and in the early 1960s he made a memorable recording of Benjamin Britten's Piano Concerto with the composer conducting.
Richter did not favor studio recordings; therefore, most of his recordings are from live performances. Many of them, particularly those from Soviet concerts, suffer from indifferent sound quality and excessive audience noise, but his playing had an electric quality that transcended these handicaps.
The pianist earned a reputation for being difficult and aloof. He was notoriously apt to cancel performances on whims, or arrive late without explanation or apology. However, those who heard him were rarely disappointed. He preferred intimate concert settings over big auditoriums, and thus returned many times to the Aldeburgh and Spoleto Festivals. He was the centerpiece of the Fêtes Musicales, held annually beginning in 1964 at Grange de Meslay, near Tours.
Among his greatest recordings are his Schubert sonatas, Rachmaninov and Prokofiev concertos, Liszt concertos (these have the benefits of first-rate sound), and his Schumann. He has also served as a chamber musician and accompanist, playing piano duets with Britten, and accompanying Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, among others.
© All Music Guide /TiVo
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Liszt: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2
Sviatoslav Richter, London Symphony Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on Dec. 1, 1961
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Sonatas
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on Jan. 1, 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Britten At Aldeburgh
Sviatoslav Richter, Benjamin Britten
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on Jan. 1, 2000
The Qobuz Essential Discography16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 29 in B-Flat Major, Op. 106 "Hammerklavier"
Classical - Released by Stradivarius on Feb. 12, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: 5 Cello Sonatas Live (Edinburgh Festival, 1964)
Mstislav Rostropovich, Sviatoslav Richter
Chamber Music - Released by DOREMI on Jan. 1, 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Keyboard Suites Vol. II
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Jan. 6, 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Sviatoslav Richter Plays Bach
Classical - Released by Live Classics on Feb. 11, 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Fantasy for Piano, Waldszenen, Fantasiestücke, Marsch
Classical - Released by Supraphon a.s. on Jan. 18, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Piano Works
Classical - Released by Musical Concepts on Mar. 8, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter Live at Carnegie Hall: All Beethoven Program (October 19, 1960)
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Oct. 27, 2017
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter Legendary Recordings
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on Apr. 24, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Concerto NO. 1, Op. 15 & Piano Sonata No. 22, Op. 54
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Jan. 5, 2015
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Richter Rediscovered
Classical - Released by RCA Red Seal on Dec. 27, 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
CHOPIN: Scherzi 1-4; Thirteen Preludes from Op. 28
Classical - Released by Musical Concepts on Aug. 2, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Sonatas
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on Jan. 1, 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Richter Plays Debussy (Live)
Classical - Released by JSC Firma Melodiya on Jan. 1, 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter plays Rachmaninov
Classical - Released by Musical Concepts on May 4, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No.2 in C Minor - Préludes Op.32 (Album of 1959)
Sviatoslav Richter, Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Stanislaw Wislocki
Classical - Released by GazzaLadra on Apr. 1, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ravel & Rachmaninoff: Piano Works (Live)
Classical - Released by Archipel on Jan. 1, 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Bunte Blätter, Op. 99 & Fantasiestücke, Op. 12
Classical - Released by Russian Compact Disc on Oct. 1, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Waldszenen, Fantasiestücke and Shostakovich: Marsche, Preludes and Fugues
Classical - Released by Supraphon a.s. on Jan. 1, 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo