Recommended Shostakovich?

The Kitajenko boxed set on Capriccio are pretty good accounts of the symphonies and are very good sounding SACDs. I also have the Barshai boxed set on Brilliant and the Mariss Jansons boxed set on EMI. All 3 sets are winners, but the Capriccio wins hands down on sound quality.
The quartets are special! On a par with the quartets of Beethoven, in my humble opinion. The Fitzwilliam mentioned above is good. I suggest you give the St. Lawrence 3,7, &8 on EMI a try. I think they have the spirit of these works right. It is not polite. It is not comfortable. It is the music of a man tormented by Stalin. Also check out the Fitzwilliam/Ashkenazy piano quintet (Decca), and the piano trio #2 (Ma, Axe, and Stern) if you can find it.

Shostakovich is most famous for his symphonies. The best known/most popular are the 5th, 1st, 7th, 8th, and 13th. He wrote 15, and all are worth hearing.

If you want to listen to one of the funniest operas ever composed, check out Shostakovich's The Nose, based on a hilarious short story of Gogol's.

There is a great new recording of The Nose on Mariinsky SACDs conducted by Gergiev.

Kal

His 5th, 7th, and 9th are the most performed, w/the 10th's second movement being one of the most intense second movements of all time IMO. The 7th (Leningrad) is wonderfully brooding, w/the 5th and 9th being more upbeat (in the Russian sense). There is a great recording on Telarc of the Atlanta Symphony of the 5th and 9th w/awesome sonics.

I love Shostakovich,but only play the symphonies when my wife is away.From the music perspective I prefer Mariss Janson conducting to all the others.Sound quality is not always perfect.I strongly recommend the violin and Cello concertos and the 11th symphony.I have over 150 cds of this composer.However to truly appreciate the orchestral music at home you need large speakers in a large room.