Search - Chopin, Schumann, Richter :: Sviatoslav Richter, Vol. 8: Chopin: Scherzi Nos. 1, 2, 3 & 4 / Schumann: Bunte Blätter, Op. 99

A real treasure!

Hiram Gomez Pardo | Valencia, Venezuela | 09/10/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the case of Chopin' s four scherzos, there is an epic feature that hardly may be found in his Polonaises; because it's much difficult to feel. It's not an outer expression of boldness or simple patriotic grimace in memory of his beloved country. In these Scherzos there is a powerful inner tension, a sense of dramatic quality and virile intensity like any other previous Opus.



To my mind I think these four Op. should be always listened uninterruptedly; considering as part of a superior unity. This spiritual journey finds in Chopin the most relevant evidence of his incisive lyricism and mercurial energy that has nothing to do with that Chopin, frequently depicted as a nostalgic and lonely man, product of the most refined expression of the Romantic movement.



The first is perhaps the strongest of the set, filled of bravura passages and expression. The second owns memorable episodes filled of mercurial vibes, and the third is the most introspective.





The four scherzo is visibly the saddest and existential of the set. It is loaded of heroic tragedy, tinged of crepuscular lyricism, that might be well considered as an epilogue, where the struggling conflicts have been left behind as if the hero was writing his personal memories. There is a restrained rage but it's far to be similar to the experimented in the battlefield.



This is the first time we may appreciate with all his powerful intensity and supreme majesty the whole set, magisterially performed by Sviatoslav Richter whose nervous and epic musculature remains until this date as the closest vision that William Kapell made in the early fifties in an unavailable recording taken from the air; thanks to the invaluable and generous kindness of Rafael Sylva a first-rate dilettante who had the honor of meeting personally to Willie in both performances in Caracas in 1948 and 1949 respectively.



The most important aspect to remark is that part of this historic set of Kapell I have not heard about any other set of Scherzos performed with such incandescence level and astonishing commitment like this one. Richter was in his 62 and the performance level is exciting, mesmerizing and absorbing.



If there is an emblematic composition that reflects with kaleidoscopic sensuality and magnificent employment of light and shadows game in all the piano's literature of Schumann, maybe Bunte blatter would respond this question. Respect this Op. 99 I have to express my most profound admiration for such colossal achievement. Recorded in 1971, this work finds in Richter a performer who captured the essential core of the work as nobody else at least until now. This memorable version is filled of nocturnal lyricism, twilight flavor and sheer éclat. Curiously, this has always been an Op. totally neglected by most pianists, and I still ask myself the reason why.



In sum, this is a fantastic album that covers two remarkable years where the febrile, volcanic and mercurial pianism of Richter was under the service of the most refulgent poetry and admirable lyricism respect previous decades.



Absolutely recommended. Don' hesitate just a second to acquire this gem!

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