Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 83 & Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor, Op. 57 "Appassionata"

The pianist Sviatoslav Richter was 45 before the Soviet authorities permitted him to travel to America. His US debut came in October 1960, in Chicago, where he played Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 2 to stunning effect. Two days later, this studio recording of Richter’s interpretation was made, with conductor Erich Leinsdorf and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The concerto’s opening two movements have plenty of the fiery virtuosity Richter was capable of. But the heart of the performance is in the slow movement, which he plays with a compelling poetry. Richter’s account of Beethoven’s “Appassionata” Sonata comes from sessions held a month later in New York. It is coruscatingly brilliant, and the feeling of a legend being born is unmistakable.