Karl Richter honoured tradition by breaking from it. As leader of the Münecher Bach-Orchester, which he founded in 1954, the German conductor valued spontaneity and subjectivity, such that no two performances of the same piece sounded alike. While he explored a broad repertoire, his treatments of Bach and Handel sparkled brightest as he stripped back Romantic excess in order to unfetter the expressive thrust of Baroque music. Perhaps it helped that as a brilliant organist, pianist and harpsichordist, he was close to the work—he imbued his performances with no uncertain passion whether approaching Bach’s organ music or ambitious choral works.