Sviatoslav Richter

Sviatoslav Richter (1915 - 1997) was a Russian pianist whose interpretative depth, prodigious technique and enormous repertoire established him amongst the top category of pianists, or indeed musicians, of the last 100 years.  His outsize musical personality, and radically individual approach imbued his music-making with a sense of seemingly limitless expression.

Since encountering Richter's performances of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and Rachmaninov he has remained the touchstone for what great pianism is. 

Richter's former teacher, Heinrich Neuhaus, emphasised his re-creative genius in a 1960 article which uses a famous eagle metaphor:

Svyatoslav Richter is the first among his peers. A happy combination of a mighty (super-mighty!) spirit with depth, purity of soul (chastity!) and consummate skill, is indeed a unique phenomenon.  ... Allowing that this phenomenon needs an explanation, how can we explain it? I shall repeat in simpler terms what I have said above. In the first place, this is explained by his tremendous creative power, by the striking, harmonious combination of those qualities which are commonly known as "intellect", "soul" and "heart" - and finally by his gigantic virtuoso talent. ... Whether he is playing Bach or Shostakovich, Beethoven or Scriabin, Schubert or Debussy, the listener seems to hear the living, resurrected composer, and becomes completely immersed in his unique, enormous world. And all of it breathes the "Richter spirit", all of it is infused with his inimitable genius for penetrating the innermost secrets of the music.

He possesses in great measure that which is usually called a feeling for form, a mastery of time and its rhythmic structure, a sense of balance and harmony stemming from the very depths of a classical disposition. In this lies his greatest power ... [h]is singular ability to grasp the whole and at the same time miss none of the smallest details of a composition suggests a comparison with an eagle who from his great height can see as far as the horizon and yet single out the tiniest detail of the landscape.

Richter footage - try these

Richter on record - where to start?

Great Richter recordings have never been easier to buy and explore.  Most of his best performances are widely available (eg Amazon) in inexpensive box sets.  However once you have these boxes, where to start?  Here's some favourite moments from the principle surveys of Richter's recordings.

Richter - Pianist of the Century, 9 cds (Deutsche Grammophon)

1. Rachmaninov: 2nd Piano Concerto: The essential Richter outing - his awesome command of the piano and the score vividly caught by this disc (just sample the torrent of notes as he enters in the last movement).  The partnership with Rowicki and the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra shows a thrilling command of the ebb and flow of the piece.  A great example of one of the features of listening to Richter - an unusual interpretation that within the force field of Richter's technique and personality feels just "right".

2. Scriabin: Piano Sonata No. 5: A highly original composition from the Russian composer given a fully committed performance from Richter.  He revels in the work from the explosive virtuosity to its moon-lit mystical moments. 

3. Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 5: An utterly hair raising performance of this difficult concerto, playing of such emphatic authority that one can only sit back and admire.  Try out the opening of the 2nd movement Moderato ben accentuato with the pungent dissonance of the highly original score.  There's some good footage of Richter playing this concerto in the first few minutes of the documentary Richter: The Enigma.

Selected Philips label discs

1. The 1958 Sofia recital (Philips):  This most famous record of a Richter concert suffers from a terrible background tape roar but the playing is incandescent, with an unsurpassed Baba Yaga/Grand Gate of Kiev conclusion to Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and Liszt's Harmonies du Soir given massive scale and grandeur (the central eruption at 5'14" is unforgettable and presumably the piano involved never recovered).

2. Liszt: Piano Concertos 1 & 2, B Minor Sonata (Philips): Famous and authoritative piano concerti with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kirill Kondrashin.  But overshadowed by the coupling - the most cosmic of Richter's B Minor Sonata records that I've encountered.  Frustratingly, Philips say nothing of its provenance (CD number is 446 200-2).

3. Bach - The Authorised Recordings: French Overture in B Minor, BWV 831 (03/1991) (Philips): Try this French Overture to sample the sublime Richter late-style: plain-speaking and more relaxed than in previous decades, but still with enormous poetry.  Bach's concluding echo effects are vividly realised.

Richter in Budapest, 14 cds (BMC)

1. Schubert: Piano Sonata In C Minor, D958 (19/02/1958): There are so many great recordings of Richter's Schubert, however this live concert brought a particularly focused performance, with the Allegro finale a driven, nightmarish pursuit.

2. Mendelssohn: Songs Without Words Op. 19, 1-3, 5-6 (16/02/1972): Mendelssohn's short pieces can be mere salon music in other hands, but Richter from the off infuses them with profound poetry and drama.

3. Beethoven: Piano Sonata in A flat, Op. 26: (09/12/1976): A Richter favourite sonata, given a performance of wide emotional scope.  The first movement Andante is often likened to Schubert but is here almost Schumann-esque, the funeral march is implacable and the whole performance is one of great stature.

Richter - Icon, 14 cds (EMI)

1. Schubert: Piano Sonata D664, andante: The simplest of musical movements transformed by the perfomer's magnetic concentration. Hypnotic.

2. Schumann: Papillons, Op. 2: the delicate shading and layering of colour in the concluding minutes is pure Richter magic.  By turns child, poet and virtuoso, Richter seemed psychologically well matched to Schumann's particular sound-world. Surely no greater Schumann pianist has existed.

3. Dvorak: Piano Concerto: This concerto was a Richter favourite and with Carlos Kleiber directing a thoroughly enjoyable performance of a neglected work.  The extremely self-critical pianist expressed reservations about this disc, but while it may be a little over-polished, few listeners can agree.

Richter in Prague, 15 cds (Praga)

1. Rachmaninov: Etudes Tableaux Op. 33, 4, 5, 8 & Op. 39, 1-4, 9 (02/06/1984):  Richter in inspired form in the Dvorak Hall in Prague, in good stereo sound.  Richter's essential poetic seriousness bring out the best in these extraordinary works, that nevertheless require a strong interpretative vision and a technique capable of realising it.  Richter never wanted for either and the selection concludes with a D Major Allegro Moderato of overwhelming tonal majesty and virtuosity.