Customer Reviews

Sviatoslav Richter: The Sofia Recital 1958

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This legendary recording captures Sviatoslav Richter in a live recital in Sofia in 1958. I first heard it on the DG "Panorama" double CD of selections of Mussorgsky's works. The sound was quite poor: the piano was tinny, there was noticeable surface noise that came and went, and the dynamic range was compressed and lacked depth. Still, the performance was so compelling that I found myself listening to it over and over again. Even after buying the Byron Janis recording on Mercury with much better sound, I missed the intensity and power of Richter's performance.

So when this newly remastered version became available, I immediately bought it, hoping that it would be an improvement. The sound of this new remastering is what this performance has deserved all along. The surface noise is almost totally gone, and the sound of the piano is much more natural, without the dry, compressed sound of the previous version. The audience is still noisy, with coughs throughout, but you get used to it after a couple listenings. The same is true of the infamous fluffed note in the opening; it's there, it's grating the first few times, then it almost takes on a certain charm all its own.

But the real power of this recording is the incredible performance by one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century. Some have said that this is the greatest piano recording ever made of anything, period. While that is perhaps an overstatement, it's certainly not far from the truth. This is an essential recording, not just because it's the definitive recording of "Pictures", but because of the power and beauty of Richter's artistry. I still enjoy the Janis recording with its clean sound and accomplished playing, but Richter's total involvement with the music surpasses Janis and all others.

My only complaint is that while the notes include a short biography of Richter, there's nothing about the recital itself, nor are there any comments about the process used in this latest remastering. This is an unfortunate oversight, especially when Philips could have justifiably used this as a stunning example of their newest remastering techniques.

Sofia, Bulgaria. February, 1958. There's a nasty cold going round. Communism's grayness is everywhere. People can barely afford to attend a concert, even at Warsaw Pact prices. But they come to hear a Ukrainian pianist of German extraction play a demanding program. And someone sets up a monophonic tape recorder. The microphone isn't as close to the piano as it ought to be.

Western civilization has lived now for forty-odd years with this recording of Moussorgsky's "Pictures." Some of us have auditioned seemingly countless other performances. But this is the one we always come back to. This is the ultimate, warts and all.

The first time it was released on CD, I was happy to see that the remainder of the concert had been added (the old Columbia LP contained only the "Pictures"). It's now chock full of shorter pieces, many thrice-familiar and a couple less so, all well done. Now we have 73 minutes of music.

Why do we all so cheerfully tolerate the below-par sound, the coughing, and the gaffs? Because the overall conception of the work, as realized by Richter, is so compelling. If you only know the "Pictures" from the orchestrated version, it's time for you to buy and get to know the original piano version. And this is the best one out there. Allow yourself to be swept away.

This is one of the greatest discs in the catalogue for sure. Richter turns in the standard by which all other Pictures will be measured, and provides the proof that it is completely unneccessary and superficial to make any additions to the piece (Horowitz, anyone?). The Schubert is fantastic, just as the tumultuous Chopin etude and the capricious Liszt waltzes. There's of course also Richter's legendary Feux Follets, played at almost impossible speed but still with such miraculous accuracy! The Harmonies du Soir etude is also breathtaking, yet here it is mainly poetry and concentration that Richter shows. And how melancholic is the closing Rachmaninov prelude! Also, the transfer is significantly better than the original issue. Not to be missed!

There are not enough superlatives in the English language to describe Richter's playing of Pictures at an Exhibition. Thrilling, monumental, dazzling would all understate the magnificence of this recording, one that leaves all others except perhaps Horowitz' 1943 recording in the dust and makes you appreciate how brilliant, varied, and even demonic this piece is in its original, unorchestrated version. The sound isn't perfect, but this is a live recital from 1958 so one has to accept some technical imperfections, and they are truly trivial in light of the performance. The rest of the recital is superb too, a master pianist in his prime. Buy it. Now.

This recording was made in 1958, a time when live performances were recorded more frequently than is the case today. Richter holds nothing back, playing with abandonement to the point where the listener shares in Richter's artistic spirit. That is why this will always be the recording to return to.

Wow.

If the vivid imagery Richter creates in this live performance isn't enough to bring tears to your eyes, the technical prowess will certainly send you searching for the "repeat" button on your cd player.

Richter, as always, delivers an emotional and monumental performance.

Early in 2001, in their "50 Great Recordings" series, Philips reissued the 1958 Sofia recital by Sviatoslav Richter. You may also acquire the recital in the 2 CD "Great Pianists of the Century" series where it is in tandem with Richter playing Prokofiev piano sonatas. I have neither heard that latter release nor ever heard any issue of this Sofia recital before, so I listened to it with "fresh ears".

Reviews here and elsewhere warned me that the sound was barely tolerable, and that audience coughing was too intrusive. Well, I can report that, once the "Pictures" begin, poor sound quality is forgotten. This is a riveting performance. The piano's dynamic range is well enough suggested, the recording quality is better in the other items, and I was not disturbed by any audible background hum. To those who complain about audience coughs I say: firstly, attend more concerts yourself and become accustomed to this phenomenon and, secondly, regard such sounds as reminders of a live performance before a large audience.

No one is likely to attend any live performance as brilliant as this.

Not much more I can add to this. If you have any interest in the original piano version of "Pictures" at all then this is the one to get. Try Muti's for an excellent version of the piece as orchestrated by Ravel(Along with a great "Rite of Spring"; dirt cheap too)- Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibiton; Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring.

Nobody else understands "Pictures" as well as Richter and in his hands time melts and you are taken on a journey you will not soon forget. Richter pushes and pulls this piece wherever he wants and we the listeners are happy to follow him where he chooses to take us.

The piano sound is quite good for its time. Fairly full and with a good dynamic range. Unfortunately the audience seems to have a case of infectious coughing. Similar to the live Wartime recordings of Furtwangler in that respect. You get used to it though, and either way it doesn't matter in the hands of a performance of this stature.

There's a reason that you can still buy this nearly 50(?!) years after it was recorded. Not only are people still talking about this recital, but we are still waiting for a recording to match it in modern sound without audience interruptions. I suspect we may have to wait a long, long time.

This performance is remarkable, so I will not even bother to repeat the other reviewers' praise. But I will point out that the "Pictures" is not the only reason to buy the CD. I keep going back to an absolutely haunting rendition of Chopin's Etude in E, op. 10 no. 3. Really, the 4:21 minutes worth of that one piece is reason enough to give this a listen. Richter makes the almost schmaltzy Chopin become the emotional force that he truly is when played appropriately (i.e., with restraint). Also, some people seem to mind the recording quality of the performance: I actually prefer the tension it creates. It also gives it a more human and potentially fragile quality, as if you have to savor it that much more because it may fall apart at any moment. If you're one of those people who actually likes the fact that you can hear Glenn Gould humming while he's playing, then you'll appreciate this recording as well. Enjoy.

The first time I heard this CD, I was a little disappointed. After all, the sound is only as good as the little tape recorder that was recording the concert could produce back then. And on top of that, the audience was suffering from a flu epidemic and were therefore coughing fairly often. Did I mention the obvious finger slip in the opening of the "Pictures"? Well, after discovering all of these things for the first time, I was not counting on this record doing anything for me. Much less being one of my all time favorites. But that's what happened after the last note was struck...the performance made up for any minor setbacks and then some. There's a way an artist can affect you to where you not only don't mind any negatives (sound, noise, missed notes, etc.), but you almost enjoy them, realizing that that is part of the art. Horowitz could do it and so could Richter.

This CD is essential, but the only way you will see that is by listening to it and letting it sweep you away.