Frogtoon Music

The Dark Side Of Classical Music (Album) by Dmitri Shostakovich

Artist Biography For Dmitri Shostakovich

Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich Russian Дмитрий Дмитриевич Шостакович September 25 O.S. September 12 1906 St Petersburg Russia – August 9 1975 Was A Russian Composer Of The Soviet Period. Shostakovich Had A Complex And Difficult Relationship With The Soviet Government Suffering Two Official Denunciations Of His Music In 1936 And 1948 And The Periodic Banning Of His Work. At The Same Time He Received A Number Of Accolades And State Awards And Served In The Supreme Soviet. Despite The Official Controversy His Works Were Popular He Is Now Held To Be As Grove's Judges Him The Most Talented Soviet Composer Of His Generation. After A Period Influenced By Prokofiev And Stravinsky Symphony No. 1 Shostakovich Switched To Modernism Symphony No. 2 And The Nose Before Developing A Hybrid Of Styles With The Opera "The Lady Macbeth Of Mtsensk "and The Ill-Fated Fourth Symphony. This Hybrid Style Ranged From The Neo-Classical With Stravinskian Influences To The Post-Romantic Music With Mahlerian Influences . His Tonality Involved Much Use Of Modality And Some Astringent Neo-Classical Harmonies À La Hindemith And Prokofiev. His Music Frequently Includes Sharp Contrasts And Elements Of The Grotesque. Shostakovich Prided Himself On His Orchestration Which Is Clear Economical And Well-Projected. This Aspect Of Shostakovich's Technique Owes More To Gustav Mahler Than Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. His Greatest Works Are Generally Considered To Be His Symphonies And String Quartets Fifteen Of Each. Other Works Include Operas Six Concertos And A Substantial Quantity Of Film Music. David Fanning Concludes In Grove That "Amid The Conflicting Pressures Of Official Requirements The Mass Suffering Of His Fellow Countrymen And His Personal Ideals Of Humanitarian And Public Service He Succeeded In Forging A Musical Language Of Colossal Emotional Power." Shostakovich Is Now Regarded As "the Most Popular Composer Of Serious Art Music Of The Middle Years Of The 20th Century".

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