Music of Privacy - Dmitri Shostakovich Sonata for

　　
　　“We often hope to find some kind of weighty message or testament in a great composer’s final work. Shostakovich’s Viola Sonata is certainly no disappointment in this respect. The first movement begins with the plucking of the open strings on the viola—a coolly impersonal, “objective” theme. The piano is restricted to ascetic textures, acting as an equal partner to the viola. A short chorale fragment appears, gravely reflective like so many other chorales in Shostakovich. Twice the viola breaks through the ice with passionate monologues, but it is always forced back to the pizzicato theme. The Scherzo is one of Shostakovich’s grotesque dance movements; the viola adopts a folk style for a chain of raucous street songs. The finale is something unique in Shostakovich: a close and continuous dialogue with another composer, namely the Beethoven of the “Moonlight” Sonata. The sonata fades in and out; its elements are defamiliarized, developed, or dramatized—and then restored to their familiar form. There had been quotations from Wagner and Rossini in the 15th Symphony, but the Finale of this Sonata goes far beyond mere quotation, although the reason for the inclusion of pre-existing music is equally elusive. Whatever meaning the Beethoven movement might have had for Shostakovich, he has left us a beautiful and moving farewell.”
　　
　 　他选择 Sonata for Viola and Piano 应该是有理由的罢，viola 在 piano 的陪伴下从未如此孤单，略显中性的声音在那里独斟自饮。以上所说和 “Moonlight” 的对话不见得真有根据，不过不能否认这近乎冥想的自问自答，时间在这里被拉长，好像面对终结的黑暗时回一个无限缓慢的手势。

Music of Privacy

“An early work, Shostakovich's Prelude and Scherzo for Octet, Op. 11 (1924-5) was probably composed while he was still a student at the Leningrad Conservatory from which he graduated in 1925.”

从Op.11里就已经能看出Shostakovich的标志性语汇，当然和后来的弦乐四重奏相比，其技术上的实验性要多一些。Shostakovich和他同时代的一些苏联作曲家不同的地方是他一直没有离开苏联，然而只有他可以代表那个时代。无论他的交响曲多么流行，在我眼里Shostakovich的音乐里属于个人的部分是占主要地位的，他的音乐语汇就是born to be private，从他的Op.11开始。

富特文格勒（8)

　　富特文格勒战时的录音是象Music&Arts等公司发掘的对象，不光是史料价值，也是因为其风格的炽烈和一往无前。这么一来，那些战后的特别以EMI录音室为代表的那些录音自然就受了些冷落。
　　
　　重新聆听他的EMI版录音，锋芒自然褪淡，然而线条和织体却反而清晰凸现。期望一个辉煌的结束，等待一次灿烂的爆发，人们怕是要失望的。然而酝酿却更持久，更宽广，过程在这里汹涌起伏，结果只是个Symbol，重要与否，指挥家已然‘说’得明明白白。