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Schubert, Liszt, Chopin/Richter

Jed Distler

Artistic Quality:

Sound Quality:

All the selections on this disc stem from recitals Sviatoslav Richter gave at the Aldeburgh Festival between 1964 and 1966. Certain independent labels boast excellent transfers of the Schubert and Liszt items, although the advantage of BBC Legends lies in its access to the best existing source material. Richter’s translucent sonority, meticulous but never fussy voicings, and laser-beam concentration work wonders in the Schubert selections, especially in how well the pianist sustains his dangerously slow basic tempo for the A-flat Moment Musical. That said, I prefer Richter’s conceptually similar yet slightly brisker 1979 Tokyo performances of this one, plus the popular F minor miniature (on Olympia or Regis). Richter balances Schubert’s unfinished E minor sonata by placing the Scherzo movement in the center and concluding with the Allegretto (the latter’s songful themes evoke the finale of Beethoven’s Op. 90 sonata). My one criticism of Richter’s graceful, pliable reading is that the right-hand melody sometimes dips underneath the inner voice that serves as a flowing counterline (the balances perfectly align in his tighter 1977 Aldeburgh traversal, which BBC ought to release).

The June 21, 1966 performance of Chopin’s Barcarolle, I believe, is new to Richter’s discography. While it’s better controlled and more accurate than another 1966 traversal included in Philips’ multidisc Richter Edition, I’ve always been bothered by an unsettled, agitated quality to his interpretation (especially in the great Coda) of a work that cries out for lyrical breadth and steady cumulation, in the manner of Perahia, Lipatti, Kempff, and Rubinstein. I have no quibbles with the B minor sonata, where Richter’s limpid sensitivity (the yearning D major theme, the ethereal final pages), febrile drive (the fughetta, the climactic octaves), and taut, fluid tempo relationships reveal Liszt the poet, showman, and architect all rolled into one. Richter’s 1966 Livorno performance on Philips is more vibrantly engineered and a little tidier in execution (was tape editing involved?), yet the pianist’s unspliced artistry unquestionably hits home. Mischa Donat’s booklet notes provide interesting contextual information about Richter’s Aldeburgh appearances along with cogent, accurate, and gush-free observations about his playing.


Recording Details:

Reference Recording: Schubert D. 780: Curzon (Decca), Liszt Sonata: Arrau (Philips), Argerich (DG)

FRANZ SCHUBERT - Moments Musicaux D. 780 Nos. 1, 3, & 6; Sonata in E minor D. 566
FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN - Barcarolle in F-sharp Op. 60
FRANZ LISZT - Sonata in B minor

    Soloists: Sviatoslav Richter (piano)

  • Record Label: BBC - 4146-2
  • Medium: CD

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