Sviatoslav Richter's "The Lost Tapes" of Beethoven Piano Sonatas

These live recordings from 1965 have never before been heard by the public

Deutsche Grammophon (DG) has recently released a set of previously unheard recordings by the renowned Russian pianist Sviatoslav Richter. These live recordings were made in 1965 at the Tours and Lucerne Festivals, and have been held in DG's archives ever since, having never been published.

Covering Beethoven's Piano Sonatas Nos. 18, 27, 28 & 31, the "Lost Tapes" have been restored for modern release by Emil Berliner Studios.

DG notes that Richter's live interpretations often display significantly greater freedom than those he made in the studio, resulting in a more artistically exciting end-product. Despite his substantial discography, Richter did not enjoy the process of making recordings, preferring the flexibility of live performance.

The album liner includes a recent interview with Elisabeth Leonskaja (a pianist and confidante of Richter), an essay by Jed Distler, and editorial notes by Markus Kettner — as well as containing numerous photographs, some of which were previously unpublished.

Widely regarded as one of the twentieth century's foremost pianists, Sviatoslav Richter was described by his teacher Heinrich Neuhaus as "the genius pupil, for whom [he] had been waiting all his life." Richter gave the world premiere performances of Prokofiev's sixth and seventh piano sonatas, and was the dedicatee of the ninth.

The winner of the 1949 Stalin Prize, Richter counted figures such as David Oistrakh, Benjamin Britten, and Mstislav Rostropovich among his chamber music partners.

The album is now available for purchase in a number of formats.