Dmitri's Dacha

[Mirror Image]

Man, this was buried back at the bottom of page 5. People, you are letting the side down! ; )

The birthday boy plays his own Prelude & Fugue in C, Op.87 № 1

http://www.youtube.com/v/Uuj5uzgmB5A

Beautiful playing and composition.

[Tapio Dimitriyevich Shostakovich]

The birthday boy plays his own Prelude & Fugue in C, Op.87 № 1

Not in Germany, but that's not unusual.

[The new erato]

The 51 CS Dmitri collection is preannounced at 60 Euro (less Vat outside the EU) here:

http://www.abeillemusique.com/CD/Classique/BRIL9245/5029365924528/Brilliant-Classics/Dimitri-Chostakovitch/edition-Chostakovitch/cleart-65057.html

[Mirror Image]

The 51 CS Dmitri collection is preannounced at 60 Euro (less Vat outside the EU) here:

http://www.abeillemusique.com/CD/Classique/BRIL9245/5029365924528/Brilliant-Classics/Dimitri-Chostakovitch/edition-Chostakovitch/cleart-65057.html

If I didn't own so much of that box set already, I would definitely pick it up, but for somebody who really is new to Shostakovich and has loved what they heard so far, this set would be a great deal.

[Mirror Image]

Bought these two 7th recordings yesterday:



I had the buy the Nelsons as an import as it's not available in the US for some f***** up reason. The 7th is a symphony that I have only recently, in the past three/four months, come to fully appreciate. A lot of it I owe to Bernstein's classic CSO performance on DG. I've never quite warmed up to this symphony until I listened to Bernstein's performance several times. Now, I can tackle other performances with no problem. I liked Masur's on Teldec with the NY Philharmonic a lot. Haitink's was a pretty strong account on Decca. Never liked Jansons or Ashkenazy recordings of Shostakovich. Anyway, I eagerly await these two newer recordings of the 7th

[PaulR]

For the third time, I saw the Violin Concerto #1 in A Minor op. 77 live.  This time with the NYPO under Andrey Boreyko conducting with Frank Peter Zimmerman as the soloist.  It was really well done, I thought.  Perhaps the best experience I have had with that piece in a live setting.

One thing I want to mention about the piece, the tutti pizzicato with the timpani is such a cool effect and fits that piece very well.  I've known it was there, but was the first time I heard it and thought it was a wonderful moment.

[Mirror Image]

For the third time, I saw the Violin Concerto #1 in A Minor op. 77 live.  This time with the NYPO under Andrey Boreyko conducting with Frank Peter Zimmerman as the soloist.  It was really well done, I thought.  Perhaps the best experience I have had with that piece in a live setting.

One thing I want to mention about the piece, the tutti pizzicato with the timpani is such a cool effect and fits that piece very well.  I've known it was there, but was the first time I heard it and thought it was a wonderful moment.

Nice, Paul! I bet it was a great performance. Boreyko is becoming quite the Shostakovian having recorded Symphonies Nos. 4, 9, & 15 already. Zimmerman is also an awesome violinist. I'm jealous! How was the Passacaglia?

[PaulR]

Nice, Paul! I bet it was a great performance. Boreyko is becoming quite the Shostakovian having recorded Symphonies Nos. 4, 9, & 15 already. Zimmerman is also an awesome violinist. I'm jealous! How was the Passacaglia?

Extremely well done, but a little too fast of a tempo for my taste. 

[Mirror Image]

Extremely well done, but a little too fast of a tempo for my taste.

Yeah, I like a slower tempo in the Passacaglia.

[bhodges]

For the third time, I saw the Violin Concerto #1 in A Minor op. 77 live.  This time with the NYPO under Andrey Boreyko conducting with Frank Peter Zimmerman as the soloist.  It was really well done, I thought.  Perhaps the best experience I have had with that piece in a live setting.

One thing I want to mention about the piece, the tutti pizzicato with the timpani is such a cool effect and fits that piece very well.  I've known it was there, but was the first time I heard it and thought it was a wonderful moment.

I was at that performance, too, and thought it was excellent. Zimmermann took a few moments to warm up, and I agree that the Passacaglia was just a bit too fast, but overall it was an excellent performance. Boreyko did a beautiful job with the orchestra, too, and kept it from overpowering the solo part.

--Bruce

[Mirror Image]

Does anyone know Shostakovich's opinion of Schnittke? I can't seem to find anything online where Shostakovich talks about Schnittke. Thanks.

[Karl Henning]

Does anyone know Shostakovich's opinion of Schnittke? I can't seem to find anything online where Shostakovich talks about Schnittke. Thanks.

I know of none. I am doubtful that he expressed any; he was, as you know, tight-lipped as a rule.

[Mirror Image]

I know of none. I am doubtful that he expressed any; he was, as you know, tight-lipped as a rule.

Yes, I suppose expressing a positive opinion of Schnittke could get him into some trouble with the Soviet authorities.

[Mirror Image]

I've discovered something rather interesting today: Shostakovich makes a quotation from Bartok's The Wooden Prince in opening of the first movement of his famous Symphony No. 5. The movement from Bartok's The Wooden Prince I'm referring to is the Fourth Dance. Obviously, Shostakvoich resolved it in a completely different way, but it's still very similar.

Let's see what I can dig up for comparison:

http://www.youtube.com/v/QLyOg6xqEXU

Listen around the 7:54 mark. Again, Shostakovich resolves this motif in a completely different way.

Shostakovich's famous 5th:

http://www.youtube.com/v/hFJvUwl8lcw

I wonder if Shostakovich was a fan of Bartok's music? Anybody? Maybe I'm just clutching at straws here. They just happen to use similar musical phrasings, but that comparison ends there.

[Brahmsian]

I've discovered something rather interesting today: Shostakovich makes a quotation from Bartok's The Wooden Prince in opening of the first movement of his famous Symphony No. 5. The movement from Bartok's The Wooden Prince I'm referring to is the Fourth Dance. Obviously, Shostakvoich resolved it in a completely different way, but it's still very similar.

I wonder if Shostakovich was a fan of Bartok's music? Anybody? Maybe I'm just clutching at straws here. They just happen to use similar musical phrasings, but that comparison ends there.

John, I come across this scenario several times over my course of music listening.  Whenever I try and bring it up, it inevitably gets shot down, or not commented on.  Perhaps, it is a situation where "I'm clutching at straws".

I tried to pick out the comparison in your case, and I could not catch it.     I will try again later on though.

[Mirror Image]

John, I come across this scenario several times over my course of music listening.  Whenever I try and bring it up, it inevitably gets shot down, or not commented on.  Perhaps, it is a situation where "I'm clutching at straws".

I tried to pick out the comparison in your case, and I could not catch it.     I will try again later on though.

Perhaps comparison was the wrong word to use. Right at the start of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 is similar to a musical passage in this Bartok's The Wooden Prince. As I mentioned, listen to the Bartok video at the 7:54 mark and then listen to the very beginning of Shostakovich's 5th, which I also posted here. There are similar musical patterns used but both composers obviously resolve them in completely different ways. I'm just inquiring to see if by chance Shostakovich picked up on this little motif and incorporated it into the first movement of his 5th? The way Bartok used the motif was quite subdued and he basically repeated it over and over again whereas Shostakovich took part of it and did something different with the idea.

But there are a lot of composers who have done this kind of thing, I don't know why I've made such a big deal about it. It's just an observation more than anything.

[North Star]

Perhaps comparison was the wrong word to use. Right at the start of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 is similar to a musical passage in this Bartok's The Wooden Prince. As I mentioned, listen to the Bartok video at the 7:54 mark and then listen to the very beginning of Shostakovich's 5th, which I also posted here. There are similar musical patterns used but both composers obviously resolve them in completely different ways. I'm just inquiring to see if by chance Shostakovich picked up on this little motif and incorporated it into the first movement of his 5th? The way Bartok used the motif was quite subdued and he basically repeated it over and over again whereas Shostakovich took part of it and did something different with the idea.

So.. this would be like the Leningrad & Intermezzo interrotto in reverse?

[Mirror Image]

So.. this would be like the Leningrad & Intermezzo interrotto in reverse?

I don't know, Karlo. Did you hear the phrase I'm talking about?

[North Star]

I don't know, Karlo. Did you hear the phrase I'm talking about?

No, I'll check it in the morning.

[Brian]

But there are a lot of composers who have done this kind of thing, I don't know why I've made such a big deal about it. It's just an observation more than anything.

I'm inclined to chalk it up to coincidence. When I was a teenager and just joined GMG I would post all sorts of stuff accusing composers of outright theft and everyone sort of laughed at me. Great ideas come to people separately sometimes, I guess.

But there are still things that make me wonder...

Compare 1:32/1:44 here

http://www.youtube.com/v/vsy5ec40cNY

to 00:32 here

http://www.youtube.com/v/UskC4VILUeg


or

0:08

http://www.youtube.com/v/5O2VHdVnnps

to this famous horn call

http://www.youtube.com/v/DB_lKSNwZZM