Sviatoslav Richter

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Lore & Background

Richter was born in Zhitomir in Volhynia Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Ukraine). His father, Teofil Danilovich Richter (1872–1941), was a pianist, organist and composer born to German expatriates, who studied at the Vienna Conservatory from 1893 to 1900. His mother, Anna Pavlovna Richter (née Moskaleva; 1893–1963), came from a noble Russian landowning family. Richter was largely self-taught as a pianist; his father gave him only a basic education in music. At age 15, he started working at the Odessa Opera, accompanying rehearsals. He did not formally start studying piano until three years later, when he sought out Heinrich Neuhaus at the Moscow Conservatory. During Richter's audition, Neuhaus whispered to a fellow student, "I believe he is a musician of genius." Neuhaus considered Richter "the genius pupil, for whom he had been waiting all his life," while acknowledging he taught Richter "almost nothing." Richter gave his first recital on March 19, 1934, at the Engineers' Club of Odessa, performing an all-Chopin program including Ballade No. 4 and Etude No. 4. During World War II, Richter's father was arrested in August 1941, found guilty of espionage, and sentenced to death on October 6, 1941. Richter vowed never to perform in Odessa again—a promise he kept. In 1943 Richter met Nina Dorliak (1908–1998), an operatic soprano. They never officially registered their marriage but remained living companions from around 1945 until Richter's death; they had no children. According to Michel Krielaars, "Their relationship was purely platonic." Since his death it has been suggested that Richter was homosexual; Michel Krielaars quotes three people who knew Richter personally and said that "of course" he was gay.

Reader's Guide

Richter's rise to international profile began with winning the Stalin Prize in 1950, leading to extensive concert tours in Russia, Eastern Europe, and China. He gave his first concerts outside the Soviet Union in Czechoslovakia in 1950. On February 18, 1952, Richter made his sole appearance as a conductor in the world premiere of Prokofiev's Symphony-Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in E minor, with Mstislav Rostropovich as soloist. In April 1958, Richter was on the jury of the first Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow; watching Van Cliburn's performance of Rachmaninoff's Concerto No. 3, Richter wept with joy and awarded Cliburn a perfect score of 25. In 1960, Richter defied authorities by performing at Boris Pasternak's funeral. His first Western concerts took place in May 1960 in Finland, and on October 15, 1960, in Chicago, where he played Brahms's 2nd Piano Concerto with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Erich Leinsdorf, creating a sensation. Chicago Tribune music critic Claudia Cassidy recalled Richter walking on stage hesitantly, looking vulnerable, then dispatching "the performance of a lifetime." The resulting recording won the Grammy Award for Best Classical Performance – Concerto or Instrumental Soloist for that year. Richter's 1960 US tour culminated in highly acclaimed concerts at Carnegie Hall, with the October 25, 1960 recital being particularly praised. Richter disliked performing in the United States; following a 1970 incident at Carnegie Hall where his performance alongside David Oistrakh was disrupted by anti-Soviet protests, Richter vowed never to return. In 1961 Richter played for the first time in London; his first recital was received with hostility by British critics, but after a July 18, 1961 concert where he performed both of Liszt's piano concertos, the critics reversed course. Richter was an intensely private person, usually quiet and withdrawn, and refused to give interviews until the last year of his life when film-maker Bruno Monsaingeon convinced him to be interviewed for a documentary.

Did You Know?

• Richter was largely self-taught as a pianist; his father gave him only a basic music education.
• At his audition for Heinrich Neuhaus, Richter performed Beethoven's Sonata No. 28 and some of his own compositions.
• Richter gave up composition shortly after moving to Moscow, saying, 'I see no point in adding to all the bad music in the world.'
• Richter's father was arrested in August 1941 and sentenced to death for espionage on October 6, 1941.
• Richter never officially married Nina Dorliak; their relationship was described as 'purely platonic.'