Search - Kirill Kondrashin :: Liszt: The Piano Concertos, Beethoven: Piano Sonatas 10, 19, & 20

Definitive Performances of Liszt's Piano Concertos

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 08/28/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Richter's commanding performances of Liszt's piano concertos have been the benchmarks against which others are measured. These are demanding, technically difficult works; Richter's performances are riveting, dramatic traversals through these scores. And yet he manages to play with much empathy and warmth, without forsaking technical excellence. Kondrashin and the London Symphony Orchestra are fine accompanists, yet they can barely keep pace with Richter's playing. Philips' coupling of these concerti with several Beethoven piano sonatas is quite odd; one would have expected a more logical coupling would be with Richter's splendid account of Liszt's piano sonata. Yet his performances of these Beethoven piano sonatas are just as vibrant and warm as those of Liszt's piano concerti. Those interested in great performances of Liszt's and Beethoven's piano music by one of the legendary pianists of the 20th Century will not want to pass up this CD."

Absolutely great

J. Zhu | toronto | 03/11/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"this is a very intense reading of the liszt piano concertos... not lacking in any respect... despite what an obviously biased reviewer said here... richter's reading of the three beethoven sonatas included here are also well worth the price on their own... in sum, must get!!"

Rare Richter Beethoven Sonata Recordings

Asia Khuf | White Salmon, WA USA | 06/18/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Richter's Liszt Concertos can't be beat, but I bought this CD to hear his versions of Beethoven Sonatas Nos. 10, 19 and 20, which are difficult to find on disc. Richter's rendering of #10 is delicate, passionate, playful, and intimate. He always does wonders with Beethoven's variations--check out his disc-full on Regis--and has a lot of fun with the march-like variations in the Andante section. Richter has less chance to show off his amazing technical skill with 19 and 20, both early "practice pieces" dating from the mid 1790s, but is poignant and convincing in eliciting their emotional content and deep musicality. Whether or not these are "definitive" recordings, you'll never listen to these pieces in the same way after hearing Richter's take on them.



Should these have been paired with the Liszt Concertos? That could be asked in another way: After hearing both Liszt Concertos, are you ready to hear Liszt's long Sonata as well? That's a pretty intense 74 minutes. I enjoyed the switch to lighter and less directly emotional. But if you don't have any recording of Richter playing Liszt's Sonata, you're missing out on something."