Shostakovich

Rating:
Summary: Excellent first-hand accounts of Shostakovich's life
Review: At first I was sceptical about the approach taken from this book. However, the approach worked exceedingly well. Instead of merely providing an overview on Shostakovich's life, the author has collected first-hand observations by the people who knew him. As a result, the reader almost has a sense of participating in his life. We feel his emotions and struggles, and develop a vivid understanding of the environment in which he lives. With this kind of background, I found myself continually listening to his music with a new appreciation.

I really hated for this book to end, and have already gone back and re-read many passages. I heartily recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent first-hand accounts of Shostakovich's life
Review: At first I was sceptical about the approach taken from this book. However, the approach worked exceedingly well. Instead of merely providing an overview on Shostakovich's life, the author has collected first-hand observations by the people who knew him. As a result, the reader almost has a sense of participating in his life. We feel his emotions and struggles, and develop a vivid understanding of the environment in which he lives. With this kind of background, I found myself continually listening to his music with a new appreciation.

I really hated for this book to end, and have already gone back and re-read many passages. I heartily recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: An enthralling journey through the life of Shostakovich
Review: Elizabeth Wilson has compiled a series of wonderful reminiscences about Shostakovich, which paint a rounded and sometimes thrilling picture of the composer's life. The most wonderful thing of all is being able to purchase the music, and to experience (often in original recording) what is being described. Some of these recordings are available on amazon.com

Elizabeth Wilson has so much original material in this book, and one feels that one is on this voyage of discovery with her.

For anyone who loves Russian music, or is interested in 20th century Russia, this is a superb insight.

Paul Foulkes-Arellano, London, March 2000

Rating:
Summary: great biography
Review: I highly recommend this book. Initially, I had some reservations about the format: Wilson went to people who knew or had contact with Shostakovich and had them write essays about their experiences, which she then put together to form the book. My hesitation stemmed from the fear that the book would read like a series of seperate articles, rather than a continuous biography, but fortunately they were not realized. The book reads like a biography with a continuous and logical flow. Because most of the accounts are firsthand, there is an certain amount of intimacy and detail that even the most thoroughly researched biographies lack. Wilson pretty much lets the individual contributors speak for themselves, only inserting paragraphs of related historical and political events where necessary for context. Although the book is a biography about Shostakovich's life, work, and personality, it also drops a few clues about performance of his works. Wilson humbly declares that the book is probably not the 'definitive' biography of Shostakovich but that she felt compelled to write it because most if not all of Shostakovich's contemporaries are getting up there in years, but I'd say the book is a definite must-read for anyone interested in Shostakovich's music.

Rating:
Summary: great biography
Review: I highly recommend this book. Initially, I had some reservations about the format: Wilson went to people who knew or had contact with Shostakovich and had them write essays about their experiences, which she then put together to form the book. My hesitation stemmed from the fear that the book would read like a series of seperate articles, rather than a continuous biography, but fortunately they were not realized. The book reads like a biography with a continuous and logical flow. Because most of the accounts are firsthand, there is an certain amount of intimacy and detail that even the most thoroughly researched biographies lack. Wilson pretty much lets the individual contributors speak for themselves, only inserting paragraphs of related historical and political events where necessary for context. Although the book is a biography about Shostakovich's life, work, and personality, it also drops a few clues about performance of his works. Wilson humbly declares that the book is probably not the 'definitive' biography of Shostakovich but that she felt compelled to write it because most if not all of Shostakovich's contemporaries are getting up there in years, but I'd say the book is a definite must-read for anyone interested in Shostakovich's music.

Rating:
Summary: Not Quite Enough
Review: I really liked this book, it's rather dull at some points, but Wilson really does do an excellent job with it. I recommend it, but if you are as one other person said, a "Shostakoholic" it really just isn't enough. If you are looking for a good biography though, this is a great choice.

Rating:
Summary: An Essential Work
Review: Of the six biographic books about Shostakovich I have read (E. Wilson, D. Sollertinsky, E. Roseberry, I. MacDonald, S. Volkov, V. Seroff), this book is by a wide margin the best. It is extremely scholarly and extensive, and includes many important personal accounts not previously available. It is very readable and avoids the temptations to analyse which other more shallow (e.g. "Was he a Commie or not?") works fall into. One can gain much understanding of Shostakovich and Russia from this insightful work.

The book by Roseberry is good, contains many pictures, but is much less extensive. The personal accounts in the book by Sollertinsky, and from the composer's aunt in the Seroff book, are worthwhile compliments to this book.

I do not consider the books by MacDonald, which is an extremely shallow analysis of the composer's life and works, or the book by Volkov, which is likely an essentially fraudulent work, to have any value.

Rating:
Summary: The Most Accurate Life of Shostakovich Today
Review: Shostakovich: A Life Remembered is an essential book for anybody interested in Russian composers and Russian music history. The book is very engrossing and accurate in it's descriptions, perhaps because it is taken from interviews the author made with people that were close to Shostakovich throughout his long career as a composer.

My favorite anecdote was about the naming of Shostakovich as told by his aunt. It is very funny to read the priest's reaction and sugguestion of a new name for the child. It is a book that brings up the essence of who Shostakovich was and it presents stories behind the music. I highly recommend this book to anybody interested in the story behind the music.

Rating:
Summary: The Most Accurate Life of Shostakovich Today
Review: Shostakovich: A Life Remembered is an essential book for anybody interested in Russian composers and Russian music history. The book is very engrossing and accurate in it's descriptions, perhaps because it is taken from interviews the author made with people that were close to Shostakovich throughout his long career as a composer.

My favorite anecdote was about the naming of Shostakovich as told by his aunt. It is very funny to read the priest's reaction and sugguestion of a new name for the child. It is a book that brings up the essence of who Shostakovich was and it presents stories behind the music. I highly recommend this book to anybody interested in the story behind the music.

Rating:
Summary: The REAL Testimony
Review: Since my teen years I have been an avid Shostakovich fan. Soon after consuming as much of his music as I could, I also began to read about Shostakovich, one of my favorite composers. I started with "Testimony" by Solomon Volkov. Initially I was very intrigued and impressed with what I thought were the man's candid thoughts on his and his colleagues' lives and careers. Then I came across the now old violent debate about the authenticity of Testimony. It appears that the Testimony's credibility is dubious at best. I felt cheated. Then I bought Elizabeth Wilson's book. Here I found credible and probably much more accurate testimony on the man's life and career than what had been purported by Volkov. The stories and anecdotes that reside in Wilson's book are informative, fascinating, varied in narrative, and responsibly laid out and supplemented. One comes to feel empathy for Shostakovich and all of the horror he went through, but also in awe of the bravery and ingenuity of the composer as well as his friends, his family, and his colleagues. Much can be gleaned from the wealth of reminisces presented in the book. For anyone seeking a genuine glimpse into the life and personality of Shostakovich, as well as the circumstances surrounding him, this book is the best on the market.