Album Description
Sviatoslav Richter (1915-1997) is numbered among the finest pianists of the 20th century. He exhibited all the best traits of the Russian school of playing: dynamism, lyrical expressiveness, and a wide range of tonal color. Combined with his typical thoughtfulness, subtlety, and attention to style, these qualities assured Richter of a distinguished international career. For many listeners, indeed, he was the paragon of balance among virtuosos, the pianist who exhibited the greatest equality among the elements across his musical palette. The West first became aware of Richter through recordings made in the 1950s. He was not allowed to tour the U.S. until 1960, and then created a sensation. Touring, however, was not Richters forte. He preferred an intimate concert venue, and in later years took to playing in small, darkened halls, sometimes with only a small lamp lighting his piano. The centerpiece of this release, the B minor Sonata of Liszt, was recorded live in Carnegie Hall on May 18, 1965 when Richter was at the height of his powers, and only one week after Vladimir Horowitz had appeared on the same stage for his famous "Return Recital". Funailles recorded Budapest, 1958; Etudes, Moscow, 1956.
