Hi-Q LP-042: SCHUBERT - Wanderer Fantasie, Sonata in A maj - RICHTER, UK 2014 SS

	C$		40
	$		29

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Background -

Having learned the fundamentals of music from his father, Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter taught himself the piano and had already given public concerts before entering the Moscow Conservatory in 1937. While still a student, Richter won first prize at the All-Union Contest of Performers of 1945. His playing earned him considerable renown, and by the time of his graduation in 1947 he had devoted fans. In 1949 he garnered the coveted Stalin Prize.

Richter gave the 1942 premiere of Sergei Prokofiev's Piano Sonata No. 6 -- the composer's first work in that form for years, and the first one he did not premiere himself. This resulted in wild acclaim for both performer and composer. Thereafter, Richter was a great proponent of Prokofiev's music, premiering also the Seventh and the Ninth Sonatas, the latter of which is dedicated to him.

Though word of Richter's excellence (and occasional poor-quality recordings) had spread outside of Russia, his foreign engagements were limited to Eastern Bloc countries (and, in one case, China) where Soviet officials felt there was reduced risk of defection. However, his 1958 performance of Prokofiev's Fifth Piano Concerto with the Philadelphia Orchestra (on tour in Leningrad) generated such excitement that he was finally permitted to tour the United States, further bolstering his reputation as a virtuoso. Engagements in all of world's musical centers followed. Richter was known as a pianist of transcendent abilities, particularly adept at highlighting the nuances of different styles. Though his interests focused primarily on music of Beethoven, and Prokofiev, he was also highly regarded for his Schubert, Schumann, Bach, Debussy, and Ravel; and in the early 1960s he made a memorable recording of Benjamin Britten's Piano Concerto with the composer conducting.

Richter did not favor studio recordings; therefore, most of his recordings are from live performances. Many of them, particularly those from Soviet concerts, suffer from indifferent sound quality and excessive audience noise, but his playing had an electric quality that transcended these handicaps.                 

The pianist earned a reputation for being difficult and aloof. He was notoriously apt to cancel performances on whims, or arrive late without explanation or apology. However, those who heard him were rarely disappointed. He preferred intimate concert settings over big auditoriums, and thus returned many times to the Aldeburgh and Spoleto Festivals. He was the centerpiece of the Fêtes Musicales, held annually beginning in 1964 at Grange de Meslay, near Tours.

Among his greatest recordings are his Schubert sonatas, Rachmaninov and Prokofiev concertos, Liszt concertos (these have the benefits of first-rate sound), and his Schumann. He has also served as a chamber musician and accompanist, playing piano duets with Britten, and accompanying Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, among others. - Rovi Staff
Great Sounding Classical Title from EMI! - Reissue of EMI ASD 561

180g Audiophile Vinyl Cut from the Original EMI Stereo Analogue Master Tapes at Abbey Road Studios! 

"Good - I'll play it three more times." The place was Paris, the Salle Wagram. The time was two o'clock in the morning, late February 1963. The speaker was Sviatoslav Richter, and 'it' was the opening Allegro, 188 strenuous bars long, of Schubert's Wanderer Fantasy. So starts the original sleeve note on this LP, which is unusually an account of the recording sessions rather than a note on the music. Ironically Richter disliked recording in a studio and preferred an audience but nevertheless the performances captured here are, as Gramophone remarked, "really something very special."

This release was recorded on February 11-13, 16, 18, and April 11-12, 1963 at Salle Wagram, Paris with legendary producer Peter Andry and engineer Paul Vavasseur. 

The original November 1963 review in GRAMOPHONE RF remarked of the Wanderer Fantasia: "Richter pounds away at the outer movements with just the steely brilliance they need. This is tremendously athletic playing, overpowering in effect...this Richter performance is really something special, quite apart from the fact that he is more realistically recorded than Brendel..."

Cut at Abbey Road Studios from the original stereo analogue master tapes with the Neumann VMS82 lathe fed an analogue pre-cut signal from a specially adapted Studer A80 tape deck with additional ‘advance’ playback head, making the cut a totally analogue process. 

Pressed on 180g vinyl to audiophile standards using the original EMI presses by The Vinyl Factory in Hayes, England. Featuring the original album artwork, with notes in English, German and French.

These classic recordings from the early '60s are a taste of what made Richter such a fantastic performer. It is the brilliant musical interpretation that stands above all else in his playing. It is hard to imagine anyone using more energy in the opening of Schubert's Wanderer Fantasy and still give it shape and meaning. The second section is as soft and beautiful as the opening is energetic. The final section combines the energy and soft lyricism. Throughout the sections, there is a sense of unity, not just because they are thematically related, but because Richter connects them emotionally. The Schumann Fantasy begins proudly heroic, but immediately the mood switches to humble admiration, and as it progresses, switching back and forth between moods, it still has that sense of being whole and right. The middle movement is again proud, but more picturesque than the first movement, while the mood of the final movement is like the middle of Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata, sedate and lyrical. Papillons is from a live recording, so there is some audience noise, but the performance is faded out before any applause can be heard at the end. It has a more "engineered" sound than the fantasies, but Richter's playing is just as brilliant, albeit more idiosyncratic. The contrasting miniatures tend to fly by quickly, full of life. The two fantasies really capture the essence of Richter's pianism, how awe-inspiring and magnificent it is. - Patsy Morita

• Hi-Q Records "Supercuts" LP item - FACTORY SEALED
  

• Records Made in the UK / England / Great Britain

• Pressing is in STEREO - recordings are from 1963 - originally issued on the EMI label
  

• Limited Edition
  

• Record Speed: 33 rpm

• Record Made issued in: 2014
  

• Record Catalog Number: HIQLP042

Featured on this item:

Schubert / Sviatoslav Richter

LP Title & Music on this Audiophile Item -

Wanderer Fantasie / Sonata in A Major, Op. 120

Track Listing -

Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Side One: Fantasia in D Major, D760 ("Wanderer") 
1. Allegro con fuoco ma non troppo-Adagio-Preso-Allegro

Side Two: Sonata in A Major, D664 
1. Allegro moderato
2. Andante
3. Allegro
Performed By / Credits on this LP include -

• Composed By – Schubert
• Engineer – Paul Vavasseur
• Liner Notes – B.J.
• Piano – Sviatoslav Richter
• Producer – Peter Andry
• Recorded At – Salle Wagram, Paris
• Phonographic Copyright (p) – Warner Classics
• Licensed From – Warner Music UK Ltd.
• Copyright (c) – Resonance Recordings Limited
Other Information -

• Hi-Q Records Supercuts 180g Vinyl
• Cut at Abbey Road Studios from the original EMI stereo analogue master tapes 
• Superior Audiophile Pressing
• Features original album artwork
• Made in England ℗ 1963 
Recorded on 11-13th, 16th & 18th February and 11-12th April 1963 
Made in England 
Reissue of His Master's Voice ASD 561

CONDITION Details:

LP Jacket:

• The jacket is in MINT condition - no seam splits or corner dings - FACTORY SEALED!

• The jacket has NO splits of any kind - it is completely solid and intact, and shows only some very minimal shelf wear. 
  

• It has NO drill holes or saw marks of any kind.
  

• There is NO writing on the front or back of the jacket.
  

• The cover has clean and sharp colors - see picture with this listing for more detail.
  

The LPs (vinyl) itself:

• The LP is assumed to be in MINT condition - FACTORY SEALED!

• This is the mint copy you want for your collection - any super picky audiophile would be happy with this one!
  

• As for any record, even brand new, sealed ones, we always recommend a proper record cleaning before playing!

A Short Note About LP GRADING -

• Mint = Only used for sealed items.
• Near Mint = Virtually flawless in every way.
• Near Mint Minus = Item has some minor imperfections, some audible.
• Excellent = Item obviously played and enjoyed with some noise.
• Very Good Plus = Many more imperfections which are noticeable and obtrusive.

For best results, always properly clean your LPs before playing them.

The LP is an audiophile quality pressing (any collector of fine MFSL, half speeds, direct to discs, Japanese/UK pressings etc., can attest to the difference a quality pressing can make to an audio system).

Do not let this rarity slip by!