Sviatoslav Richter Plays Liszt & Chopin

London Symphony Orchestra; Richter, Sviatoslav; Tschechische Philharmonie; Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra; Ferencsik, János; Ginsburg, Anton; Ancerl, Karel; Kondrashin, Kirill; Hungarian State Orchestra; Dorliac, Nina

Being one of the greatest virtuosos of the 20th century, Richter himself compiled the “8-study suite” of Liszt’s music (presented here) and a “12-study suite” of Chopin’s music. He started to perform both compilations live in concerts in the 1950s and continued to do so until 1988, often one after the other on consecutive days. His performances have remained peerless and beyond comparison to this day. This edition also presents all 14 of the études that Richter performed from Chopin’s op. 10 and op. 25. Each release of this edition features bonus pieces with alternative recordings from the studio or abroad. Volume 12 further includes three mazurkas as well as Sonata no. 2 by Karol Szymanowski, whom Richter held in high regard. In fact, Karol Szymanowski was a cousin of the legendary Moscow professor Heinrich Neuhaus, Richter’s revered teacher. Richter continued to play the Sonata for 50 years, from 1939 till 1989. It seems justifiable to assume that his personal relationship with the composer is what made the pianist one of the most accomplished performers of Szymanowski. Profil Edition Günter Hänssler has, along similar lines, already released albums featuring Richter’s performances of works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert as well as Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms. This edition is devoted to the composers Frédéric Chopin and Franz Liszt. The set Sviatoslav Richter plays Schubert — live in Moscow won the prize for “historical recording of 2018” at the International Classical Music Awards.

Price: $59.98