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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Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31 & Diabelli Variations
Classical - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 01/09/2012
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Liszt: Concertos pour piano Nos. 1 & 2 (Stereo Version)
Sviatoslav Richter, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin
Classical - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonate pour piano No. 17, Op. 31 No. 2 "La tempête" - Schumann: Fantaisie, Op. 17 (Stereo Version)
Miscellaneous - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter Plays Prokofiev
Classical - Lançado por Musical Concepts em 29/09/2023
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Franz Liszt: Piano Sonata, 8 Études d'exécution transcendante & other piano works
Classical - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 01/03/2014
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter Plays Haydn, Chopin, Rachmaninoff and Ravel - Live at Mosque Theatre (December 28, 1960)
Classical - Lançado por Sony Classical em 05/01/2015
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter plays Schubert Sonatas 19 & 21
Classical - Lançado por Musical Concepts em 18/05/2010
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 83
Classical - Lançado por Sony Classical em 15/01/2016
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Franz Schubert: Piano Sonatas Nos. 16 & 17
Classical - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 30/10/2012
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert : Lieder
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Sviatoslav Richter
Lieder (German) - Lançado por Deutsche Grammophon (DG) em 01/01/1978
A discografia ideal da QobuzQualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 20 (Stereo Version)
Sviatoslav Richter, Stanisław Wisłocki, Orkiestra Symfoniczna Filharmonii Narodowej
Miscellaneous - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Sonatas
Classical - Lançado por Regis Records em 01/01/2012
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Robert Schumann: Symphonic Studies, Fantasie Op. 17 & Faschingsschwank aus Wien
Classical - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 01/04/2013
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Pianist Of The Century (Complete DG Solo / Concerto Recordings)
Classical - Lançado por Deutsche Grammophon (DG) em 01/01/2009
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Well Tempered Clavier (Books I & II, Complete)
Classical - Lançado por Musical Concepts em 14/10/2014
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Piano Concerto; Introduction & Allegro appassionato; Waldszenen
Sviatoslav Richter, Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra, Stanislaw Wislocki, Witold Rowicki
Classical - Lançado por Deutsche Grammophon (DG) em 01/01/1960
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sergei Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2, 4 Preludes
Sviatoslav Richter, Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra, USSR Radio-TV State Symphony Orchestra, Kurt Sanderling
Classical - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 01/01/2008
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Sviatoslav Richter plays Liszt & Chopin
Classical - Lançado por Profil em 17/08/2018
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonate pour piano No. 17 "La tempête" - Schumann: Fantaisie, Op. 17 (Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Lançado por BNF Collection em 01/01/1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Johannes Brahms: Piano Sonatas Nos. 1 & 2, Variations on a Hungarian Song & Klavierstücke
Classical - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 01/06/2013
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonatas No. 5 "Spring", No. 6 & No. 9 "Kreutzer"
David Oïstrakh, Sviatoslav Richter, Frida Bauer
Chamber Music - Lançado por Praga Digitals em 01/02/2016
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo