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Shostakovich...WHOA


An old g/f made a copy of a Shostakovich recording and until this week I’d never gotten around to it. MAN, is this guy giving me nightmares. I don’t know a damn thing about classical music but HOLY CHRISTMAS!

I can’t call up the old g/f to ask (I want to live, I want to live!) so I’m hoping someone can ID this recording and then offer suggestions to similar Shostakovich. I’m looking for brooding, scary, intense, hair-raising chaos…just like what’s-her-name.

The recording I was given has the following handwritten on it: “Kammersinfornie (after) string Quartet #8 & #10.” “1960” is also written on the recording with an arrow from it pointing to “Quartet #8.” The track most indicative of what I like is #2 whatever that is.

What’s this guy’s rep in the classical world, anyway? Maybe the style of this recording isn’t representative of his work.

As an interesting side note…this girl was always giving me really twisted material as witnessed by the title of the last book she gave me: “The Insanity of Normality – Realism as Sickness: Toward Understanding Human Destructiveness.” An army of red flags popped up with that one but I valiantly forged ahead with my little pea shooter anyway (please excuse the disgusting and humiliating metaphor.) I got clobbered.
kublakhan
mrlabguy
44 posts
 
Thanks, I just went out and purchased Shostakovich 5 CD collection of String Quartets. Amazing...

Michael
shubertmaniac
350 posts
 
But which set?
tweekerman
473 posts
 
Get the historic recording released by Chandos of the 1960's recording by the legendary Borodin String Quartet, they recorded these 3 times, with a few changes in 1 violinist, but its this first recording that is amazing. Not sure, but someone at Chandos wanted to make sure these recordings saw the light of day at least one more time, blessed us.
irishdog
88 posts
 
Try the Andre Previn recording (on EMI) of Shostakovitch's Symphony #8. It will blow you away! The British issue LP is best, but the CD reissue will do nicely.
914nut
100 posts
 
Give a listen to The Ahn Trio playing music by Kenji Bunch,
especially "Slow Dance" on their "Ahn-Plugged" CD. That may bring a tear or two. His "Swing Shift" is very atmospheric, on their latest CD, "Groovebox"

Also, it seems some of the Estonians/Georgians--Tubin and Nadarejshvili for example--have picked up where Shostakovich left off. Still lots of strife in that part of the world.

It may just be my feeling, but it seems that many normally lyrical composers, such as Copland, really do some atonal, discordant, spine-chilling stuff in their chamber music, string quartets in particular. As if their symphonies, tone poems, etc., are written to appeal to the masses, while they let it all hang out for the more hip with their chamber music.
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