RICHTER PLAYS MOZART CONCERTOS (DVD)

Richter Plays Mozart Concertos

Sviatoslav Richter (piano)

French National Radio Orchestra, Shinsei Nihon Symphony Orchestra, Moscow State Symphony Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, Rudolf Barshai, Kyril Kondrashin

Concerto No. 9, in E Flat, K. 271 (cadenzas by Mozart)

French National Radio Orchestra
Lorin Maazel, conductor (July 3, 1966, Tours)

Concerto No. 1, in F, K. 37 (cadenza by Artur Balsam)
Concerto No. 5, in D, K. 175 (cadenza by Soulima Stravinsky)
Concerto No. 18, in B Flat, K. 456 (cadenzas by Mozart)
Shinsei Nihon Symphony Orchestra
Rudolf Barshai, conductor (March 3, 1994, Tokyo)

Concerto No. 18, in B Flat, K. 456 (cadenzas by Mozart)
Moscow State Symphony Orchestra
Kyril Kondrashin, conductor (January 9, 1977)

Richter was not particularly noted as a Mozartean, but he should have been. He played a wide repertoire of Mozart’s music, including more than half of the Piano Concertos.

CDs of his playing of all these Concertos have been previously released, but these videos have never been commercially released. They span almost three decades of Richter’s career, from the early Concerto No. 9 with Maazel to the three Concertos performed in one concert in Tokyo which was his last performance with orchestra. (A previous audio release described it as his last concert, which is incorrect.) A bonus repeat version of No. 18 has been included. If nothing else, it demonstrates that Richter’s powers were undiminished in the 1994 performance.

These videos have been carefully remastered by Chris Andersen of Nevessa Productions. Among other aspects, they have been carefully checked (and in some cases adjusted) for accurate synchronzation between picture and sound.