Pianist Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter
Posted by: ken c on 24 May 2001
i picked up a piano recording the other day. i have just played it. it has affected me deeply. its Sviatoslav Richter on "The Authorized Recordings - Schubert" a double CD on Philips Digital Classics. i have just played the first CD, "Sonata in G". absolutely fantastic!!! i recommend it highly, very highly indeed.
i have checked AMG web site and it says "Richter is known as a pianist of transcendent abilities, particularly adept at highlighting the nuances of different styles..."
and further...
"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."
well, this particular double CD is a case in point. you can very clearly hear the audience being, well, an audience (caughs, opening packets of sweets, etc) -- but this makes the recording very real and human -- i really felt i was in the same room as the artist.
i know there are some real (not pretenders like me) classical music afficionados, who will have a lot more intelligent things to say about Richter, and also this particular recording of his than i can. i'd be very interested.
i have to say though that playing records is now seriously affecting my work, honest... and i shudder to think what will happen when i get the cdsii??
enjoy
ken
First of all,
quote:You just hit the bull's eye, and I really expect troubles for your job because you seem to be on the starting point of a long list of Richter experiences ...
it has affected me deeply
Indeed, IMHO there are few pianists who were able to follow a certain idea of interpretation throughout their repertoire, whatever it may be - Bach or Webern. Richter is certainly one of the players with the largest repertoire, and even though he was better in, say, Scriabin than in Chopin, he can't be considered a specialist for any specific repertoire (like Cortot=Chopin, Schnabel=Beethoven etc.). BTW, in one of my previous posts, I already stated that even though I don't like his Chopin, his best recording remains the selection of Chopin Preludes on the Olympia record label.
Thing is, for me Richter is in some ways one of the most "impressive" pianists, on the same level as Horowitz for instance, but using totally different tools to get there. In the case of Horowitz it was sheer virtuosity, authority and an exceptional ability to make a piano sound (and sing). As you can see, I can explain Horowitz' case, but I will never be able to explain Richter's power in that matter - he just keeps you spellbound, period. So he's definitely useless for background music, at Harrod's people would stop buying.
The Beethoven Appassionata is an excellent example here, where Richter's interpretation has nothing to do with the recording of a Beethoven purist like Schnabel. A lot of things "go wrong" in Richters playing, and he isn't the most accurate follower of all indications provided in the composer's original score - but on the whole it's just magical, unique, beautiful, impressive, whatever you want, and IMO Richter's recordings usually match the central idea of the work - in other words, Richter uses his own tools to reach what other "specialist" pianists can. You just guessed it - Richter is Richter, and if you don't like him, you will most probably reject all his work.
In case of Schubert, the "specialists" are, among others, Clifford Curzon, Artur Schnabel, Edwin Fischer, and my favourite Wilhelm Kempff whose charming, fresh, tuneful and fragile interpretations are delightful. Some of these people get definitely closer to the expectations of the composer, but none of them is able to take hold of me the way Richter does.
Generally, Richter's Olympia recordings are excellent, it's difficult to go wrong. I'd only be careful with Richter playing Chopin (except for the gem I told you of) as I find him a little heavy-handed. His live recordings are somewhat a hit-and-miss affair (I saw him once live, his set of Chopin Polonaises at the beginning was absolutely dreadful, but the Scriabin set after the break was historic) and I would therefore be cautious with obscure pseudo-official recordings, especially those offered on italian labels. Apart from Olympia, the Philips series "Great Pianists of the 20th Century" is very good too.
If you like piano, look for "Great Pianists of our time" written by the great Vizir of all critics, Joachim Kaiser. Comprehensive, not too technical but still packed with information.
HTH
Cheese - may all beings be happy
FYI:
Chopin Preludes: Olympia OCD 112
Beethoven Appassionata/Brahms Concernto N°2: RCA Papillon GD86518
Schubert, Vol. 1: Olympia OCD 286
Schubert, Vol. 3: Olympia OCD 288
Cheese - may all beings be happy