Shostakovich: Overcoming Silence
Class
Article
College
Caine College of the Arts
Department
Music Department
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Abstract
20th century composer Dmitri Shostakovich lived in Russia during the Communist regime. Under the Soviet government, his musical voice was often stifled due to political censorship. Our research examines his third string quartet, which he wrote shortly after the Second World War. Originally written with an overt mention of war, he later had to remove the titles of the movement due to governmental pressures. We specifically focus on the way Shostakovich used musical form and intention to express himself musically in spite of the toxic political environment. We maintain that we have much to learn from Shostakovich in our day about how to overcome a silenced voice.
Location
Room 101
Start Date
4-10-2019 1:30 PM
End Date
4-10-2019 2:45 PM
Shostakovich: Overcoming Silence
Room 101
20th century composer Dmitri Shostakovich lived in Russia during the Communist regime. Under the Soviet government, his musical voice was often stifled due to political censorship. Our research examines his third string quartet, which he wrote shortly after the Second World War. Originally written with an overt mention of war, he later had to remove the titles of the movement due to governmental pressures. We specifically focus on the way Shostakovich used musical form and intention to express himself musically in spite of the toxic political environment. We maintain that we have much to learn from Shostakovich in our day about how to overcome a silenced voice.