Sviatoslav Richter - Sviatoslav Richter in Concert: Historical Russian Archives (2004) [Box Set 5CDs]

For fans of Sviatoslav Richter, it does not much matter if the sound is not all that great and it does not much matter if the repertoire is the same repertoire as always. It does not even matter much if the performances are not the greatest Richter ever recorded. For fans of Sviatoslav Richter, the only thing that matters is that there are new Richter recordings because that all by itself means that they will be some of the greatest performances of the greatest repertoire ever recorded. And this five-disc set of Sonatas by Beethoven, Schubert, and Liszt does not disappoint. With recordings dates from 1961 through 1975 and recording venues all in the USSR and its empire, the sound is hard and harsh. But with repertoire ranging from the last three Beethoven Sonatas through Schubert's last Sonata to Liszt's only Sonata, the music has the supreme masterpieces of the Romantic repertoire. And while there are Richter performances here and there that may arguably exceed these, Richter's performances here are as virtuosic, as expressive, as profound, and as transcendent as any he ever recorded. Which makes them some of the greatest performances of the greatest repertoire ever recorded.



Tracks:

CD1:

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Piano Sonata No. 27 in E minor Op. 90
01. 1. Mit Lebhaftigkeit und durchaus mit Empfindung und Ausdruck (05:45)
02. 2. Nicht zu geschwind und sehr singbar vorzutragen (06:43)

Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major Op. 109
03. 1. Vivace ma non troppo-Adagio espressivo-tempo I (03:22)
04. 2. Prestissimo (02:24)
05. 3. Andante molto cantabile ed espressivo (12:34)

Piano Sonata No. 31 in A flat Major Op. 110
06. 1. Moderato cantabile molto espressivo (06:16)
07. 2. Allegro molto (02:40)
08. 3. Adagio ma non troppo-Arioso dolente (03:50)
09. 4. Fuga, Allegro ma non troppo-L'istesso tempo di arioso (07:37)

Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor Op. 111
10. 1. Maestoso-Allegro con brio ed appassionato (08:11)
11. 2. Arietta, Adagio molto semplice e cantabile (14:50)

CD2:

Sonata No. 4 in E flat major, Op. 7
01. 1. Allegro molto e con brio (08:22)
02. 2. Largo, con gran espressione (07:48)
03. 3. Allegro (05:26)
04. 4. Rondo, Poco allegretto e grazioso (05:47)

Sonata No. 17 in D minor, Op. 31 No. 2 'Sturm'
05. 1. Largo-Allegro (09:23)
06. 2. Adagio (07:26)
07. 3. Allegretto (06:52)

Sonata No. 18 in E flat major, Op. 31 No.3
08. 1. Allegro (09:11)
09. 2. Scherzo, Allegretto vivace (04:36)
10. 3. Menuetto, Moderato e grazioso (04:34)
11. 4. Presto con fuoco (03:59)

CD3:

Piano Sonata No.3 in C major, Op. 2 No.3
01. 1. Allegro con brio (10:28)
02. 2. Adagio (07:53)
03. 3. Scherzo, Allegro (03:29)
04. 4. Allegro assai (05:00)

Piano Sonata No. 28 in A major, Op. 101
05. 1. Etwas lebhaft und mit den innigsten Empfindung (Allegretto ma non troppo) (04:20)
06. 2. Lebaft, Marschmaessig (Vivace alla marcia) (05:32)
07. 3. Langsam und sehnsuchtvoll (Adagio, ma non troppo, con affetto) (02:32)
08. 4. Geschwind, doch nicht zu sehr, und mit Entschlossenheit (Allegro) (06:41)


Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

09. Piano Sonata in B minor, S.178 (29:51)

CD4:

Franz Schubert (1797-1828)

Piano Sonata in B flat major, No. 21 D 960
01. 1. Molto moderato (24:15)
02. 2. Andante sostenuto (09:15)
03. 3. Scherzo, Allegro vivace con delicatezza (03:24)
04. 4. Allegro ma non troppo (06:53)

Piano Sonata in B major, No.9 D 575 (Op. 147)
05. 1. Allegro ma non troppo (07:52)
06. 2. Andante (06:02)
07. 3. Scherzo, Allegretto (06:38)
08. 4. Allegro giusto (04:06)

CD5:

Piano Sonata in E minor, No.6 D 566
01. 1. Moderato (07:09)
02. 2. Scherzo, Allegro vivace (05:40)
03. 3. Allegretto (07:12)

Piano Sonata in G major, No.18 D 894
04. 1. Molto moderato e cantabile (26:18)
05. 2. Andante (07:41)
06. 3. Menuetto (Allegro moderato) (04:18)
07. 4. Allegretto (07:25)
08. 5. Allegretto in C minor, D 915 (07:14)