BY FRED KIRSHNIT [NY Sun, 25 May 2006]

In the 1950s, a groundswell of speculation turned into a torrent of rumors as piano aficionados venturing behind the Iron Curtain returned with tales of a great virtuoso. "Wait until you hear Richter!" they would say. The Russian Sviatoslav Richter finally arrived in America in 1960, and he turned out to be as phenomenal as advertised.