The Bach Fantasy in C Minor, S. 906; Brahms Intermezzo, Op. 116, No. 5; and Beethoven Rondo in C, Op. 51, No. 1 already exist in Sviatoslav Richter performances in Philips's Authorized Richter Edition and other Live Classics releases. Philips's Beethoven Rondo boasts richer sound and crisper articulation in the pianist's downward runs. Conversely, Richter's concept of the Bach Fantasy is broader and more intense here. Purists will take issue with the pianist's distinctly un-Baroque sonority and mesmerizing legato in Bach, while others will be riveted by his insight and laserlike concentration. It's a toss-up between the steady and prismatic 1986 Brahms Op. 116, No. 5 for Philips and the moodier, more subjective 1992 version here. Some may find the first two Brahms Ballads in Op. 10 a bit cut-and-dried, but Richter's sharp, masculine profile is preferable to languorous wallowing any day. A fine collection all around. --Jed Distler