RICHTER CONCERTS

The long-running Richter Concerts, under the revered Wagnerian conductor Hans Richter, transformed the standard of London’s orchestral playing in the late nineteenth century. His attention to detail in rehearsal and his commanding presence on the rostrum was an inspiration to players and audiences alike.

The first ‘Wagner Festival’ in 1877 took place at the Royal Albert Hall, an attempt to shore up Wagner’s own finances in the wake of his inaugural opera season at Bayreuth.  Soon Richter’s concerts became an annual fixture in London’s concert calendar, eventually settling into a regular pattern: a short concert season in the early summer, and a further series in the autumn as part of a national tour. Mostly the concerts were presented in the reverential atmosphere of St James’s Hall, though later there were occasional excursions to the more opulent Queen’s Hall.

Programmes were firmly rooted in the Austro-German tradition, with Beethoven and Wagner as cornerstones. While there was some nod towards British music in this mould – Elgar’s Enigma Variations were premiered under Richter in 1899 – departures from the core repertoire were comparatively rare. That same year Richter was lured to Manchester’s Hallé Orchestra, and the regular London series came to an end in the autumn of 1902 (a further season with the Hallé was given in 1904).

Though Richter’s monumental tempi were no longer to everyone’s taste, he remained a looming presence in London’s musical life through his connections with the Covent Garden opera and with the new London Symphony Orchestra.

For programmes of the concerts 1893–1904, download the Calendar of London Concerts 1893–1914, press the Search Series tab at the bottom of the page, and select Richter Concerts.