| Beethoven Piano Sonata in F minor, Op. 57, "Appassionata" a. |
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| RCA Papillon (Mid price) (Cassette) GK86518; (CD) GD86518 (71 minutes: ADD). Item marked a from SB2119 (9/61), b SB2106 (2/61). |
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This record admirably couples together two recordings which show Richter at his very finest. Anyone who has heard him live in the concert hall will know the enormous range of dynamics at his command: his fortissimos are not just loud but big in tone too, while his pianissimos never lose their timbre. The Appassionata is one of his few recordings that demonstrates this adequately. The very opening has a dramatically wide range, while in the second movement the calm of his mezzo-forte playing is equally gripping. The finale shows his bravura at its most electrifying, with the coda almost going over the top (some ears, I know, find this going too far in abandoned impetus). It is a thrilling account overall—and undoubtedly a great one that is quite unforgettable.
The Brahms performance is my favourite version of this concerto, although I do not forget Gilels on DG (magisterial, with the very soul of Brahms in his warmth and breadth) nor Rubinstein (RCA), who is wonderfully luminous and shows a mesmeric lightness of touch in the finale. Leinsdorf and Richter open slowly and romantically but unlike Bernstein and Zimmerman (DG), who do much the same thing, they have a clear grasp of the overall structure and show no desire to make self-conscious interpretative points at the expense of the music's impetus. Everything sounds spontaneous and great power is also generated. The balance between the two inner movements is perfectly calculated: the appassionato of the second is never aggressive, the Andante is rapt in its lyrical atmosphere. The closing Allegretto immediately shows its grazioso character and then the music flares up: Richter is a Russian and he never allows us to forget it. In short, for all its waywardness, the spirit of Brahms dominates; his majesty, his fieriness, his warmth—each dimension is present, and the effect is like a memorable live performance. Whereas in the sonata the piano timbre is given just a touch of hardness (though it is fuller than on the original LP), the recording of the concerto sounds amazingly good with the famous Chicago ambience so right for Brahms—the strings have a glorious amplitude and the piano tone is pretty good too. An outstanding bargain in every respect.
IM