# Sviatoslav Richter, Emil Gilels, and Vladimir Horowitz?



## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

After a good many years of seriously collecting classical music and far too many CDs I am at the point where I rarely purchase any recordings of music or composers who are new to me. far more often I am seeking out alternative recordings of beloved works of music. Last year I spent a good deal of time and money investigating and collecting works by a range of the finest violinists of the last half-century plus. Recently I have been delving deeper into a number of the finest pianists... especially Martha Argerich and the three great Russian/Soviet/Ukranians: Sviatoslav Richter, Emil Gilels, and Vladimir Horowitz. I'm not interested in purchasing huge complete box sets (at least not right now). Rather, I am interested in what recordings by these three great pianists you consider "essential".


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## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

Haydn Piano Sonatas (2 separate albums of one disc each) (Richter)
Brahms Piano Concerto 1; Ballads (Gilels with Berlin Philharmonic)

I might have a few others, but my database doesn't always list the soloists.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

I went digital so storage isn't an issue.

For Richter, the box sets on Decca and DG are the way to go.

















You really can't go single recordings very well with Richter. I recommend only box sets for Richter.

Giliels' Brahms Piano Concertos recordings are awesome too. Two discer on DG.

For Horowitz any single album release will do. Stick to Chopin and Romantic composers for him mostly.


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## AnotherSpin (Apr 9, 2015)

Two from these three became musicians and gave their first public concerts in my home town, Odessa. Is there something in the air, light, or smell of the Sea?...) Nevertheless, by some reason the more years I listen music the less often I turn to them.


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## sharik (Jan 23, 2013)




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## sharik (Jan 23, 2013)




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## Guest (May 1, 2015)

This is not a response to "I am interested in what recordings by these three great pianists you consider essential." This is a response to something else in the OP. I hope that's OK.



StlukesguildOhio said:


> After a good many years of seriously collecting classical music and far too many CDs I am at the point where I rarely purchase any recordings of music or composers who are new to me. far more often I am seeking out alternative recordings of beloved works of music.


That seems a clear statement, a fair expression of an orientation.

Here's how I would express my own orientation: "After a good many years of seriously collecting classical music, I am at the point where I rarely purchase any recordings of music or composers except for those who are new to me. While I do still purchase music by composers I know, more often I am seeking out music that I do not know."

You see? St and I are different people. We have different needs and different orientations. It's no wonder we disagree about things! But so what? We're different. It's only when one or the other of those different needs or orientations gets played as being better that there's any trouble.

Well, that's my two cents worth. Back to the recordings of those three very fine pianists. No disagreement there, anyway.


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## GGluek (Dec 11, 2011)

Richter's lo-fi concert recording (Sophia) of Pictures at an Exhibition has some breathtaking moments.


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## Guest (May 1, 2015)

When it came time for me to donate all my physical CDs to friends and charities, this was the only recording of Pictures that I ripped. It's spectacular, glitches and all.


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## Heliogabo (Dec 29, 2014)

Three essentials:
-Horowitz/ Scriabin recordings 
-Gilels/ Grieg, Lyric pieces
-Richter/ Bach, Well tempered klavier


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## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

For Richter: the Big Schubert sonatas; whatever you can find of 'Richter in Prague' (which includes the other great recorded performance of Pictures; the 'point' happens in a different place).

For Gilels: any of the Beethoven sonatas; the Grieg SoWiWo (very slow paced, but...); St. Saens piano concerto #2 with Cluytens.

Horowitz: the guy had a relatively small repertoire and a lot of recordings of it. You need to find the ones that worked - for you. His recorded selection of Scarlatti sonatas is idiosyncratic, and IMO as good as anybodies. There are a _lot_ of bootlegged recording of concerts out there, many of them in not-good sound.


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

I used to listen to a lot of the repertoire that these three pianists play, but over the past couple of years I've been focused on early and more recent music. Anyway, I asked myself if there are any recordings by the pianists in question which still give me a frisson of excitement. And there are

For Richter, it's the Winterreise with Peter Schreier.
For Gilels, it's the Mozart PC 27 from Moscow, he directs the orchestra, on a live recording on the Vista Vera label.
For Horowitz it's the Kreisleriana from his Carnegie Hall recital in November 1968.

I remember making a list of some favourite Richter recordings for someone here a while ago, the search function should be able unearth it.


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## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

On the off chance you like Medtner's Sonata in G Minor, Op. 22 (the best of the ones I've heard), Gilels recorded a great performance of it:


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

StlukesguildOhio said:


> After a good many years of seriously collecting classical music and far too many CDs I am at the point where I rarely purchase any recordings of music or composers who are new to me. far more often I am seeking out alternative recordings of beloved works of music. Last year I spent a good deal of time and money investigating and collecting works by a range of the finest violinists of the last half-century plus. Recently I have been delving deeper into a number of the finest pianists... especially Martha Argerich and the three great Russian/Soviet/Ukranians: Sviatoslav Richter, Emil Gilels, and Vladimir Horowitz. I'm not interested in purchasing huge complete box sets (at least not right now). Rather, I am interested in what recordings by these three great pianists you consider "essential".


On the radio today I heard Gilels play the Beethoven Concerto No. 3 with Szell. I was highly impressed, and shall get it.


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## Triplets (Sep 4, 2014)

Richter--Beethoven Last 3 Piano Sonatas, the aforementioned Pictures, and a Selection of Preludes and Fugues from WTC (multiple recordings)
Gilels--You could do worse than the small Sony Box that has Tchaik 1 (x2), Brahms 2 with Reinerand the Liszt Sonata. I would add the Grieg Lyric Pieces and Shostakavich Preludes and Fugues (excerpts)
Horowitz--His Chopin, Rachmaninoff, and Scarlatti. Avoid his Beethoven and Mozart (imo).


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

EdwardBast said:


> On the off chance you like Medtner's Sonata in G Minor, Op. 22 (the best of the ones I've heard), Gilels recorded a great performance of it:


I love Gilels and I love Medtner, but for some reason I prefer Hamish Milne's interpretation of that piece.


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## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

clavichorder said:


> I love Gilels and I love Medtner, but for some reason I prefer Hamish Milne's interpretation of that piece.


I'll have to look for that. Thanks.


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