No, not Sviatoslav the renowned pianist, but Franz Xaver, the little-known 18th-century composer. Some of his chamber music has been recorded by Nikolaus Harnoncourt and others, but this disc explores further. Richter played in the virtuoso Mannheim orchestra and so has been labelled an early classicist, but on this evidence he is a fascinating link between the baroque and the next musical era. Generally easy on the ear, flowing gracefully, his idiom then springs surprises: the Adagio and Fugue in G minor (could Mozart have known it?) is remarkable as its icy suspensions and slow progress give way to a desolate chromatic fugue with hard-hitting episodes. Quite a find.
