Savannah Music Festival LIVE 324 – Shostakovich

Original air date: week of September 26, 2010

As one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century, Dmitri Shostakovich was a child prodigy as both a pianist and composer. Born in 1906 in St. Petersburg, Russia, he first achieved national fame in the early 20s, but he would eventually have a complex and difficult relationship with the Stalinist bureaucracy. His music was officially denounced twice, in 1936 and 1948, and periodically banned. Despite this controversy, his works were popular and well-received, and his musical legacy is still thriving in the 21st century. In this episode, we listen to the Emerson String Quartet play Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 10 in A-flat major, Op. 118, then the Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 57 featuring pianist Wu Han.