Sviatoslav Richter’s 1960 recording of Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto sounds fuller and more vibrant in this new transfer than in previous CD editions. Technically, Richter is extraordinary. He negotiates the opening cadenza’s difficult hand-crossings with uncompromising smoothness and impetuously sweeps through the movement’s acres of thick chords and trills. Similar effortlessness informs the Scherzo’s notorious pianissimo octaves (measures 216-221) and the finale’s coda. That said, some listeners might take issue with the performance’s frequent tempo gearshifts, which sometimes result in ensemble lapses, as in the fourth movement’s opening measures. Instead they will prefer readings that are leaner, more assertively accented, and classically poised–like Serkin/Szell, Fleisher/Szell, Gilels/Reiner, and Buchbinder/Harnoncourt. Yet Richter makes a more cogent case for his approach here than in his 1969 remake with Lorin Maazel.
The C major sonata was recorded live in July, 1988. Whatever the 73-year-old pianist had lost in terms of speed, his huge dynamic range, long-lined concentration, and power of projection triumphantly manifest themselves. I still feel that the Finale’s cross-rhythms are better served with faster tempos and lighter articulation (Julius Katchen’s Decca recording remains my favorite, along with the hard-to-find RCA William Masselos traversal), but Richter’s slower, rock-steady gait equally convinces. The interpretation differs very little from the three other Richter Brahms Op. 1 recordings released to date (Decca, Philips, and Praga). This is a disc well worth considering, and not just for Richter acolytes. [8/2/2004]