Go and listen to his 10th symphony. I do not believe you will tell me that your time was wasted. This work is incredible. It haunts me, sends me into fits of ecstacy, has me jumping out of my seat in high energy and leaves me singing its melodies for the remainder of the day.
#13 This symphony was not a quick love for me. It grew slowly, but all the more intensely for it. Shostakovich had a powerful way of commenting on tragedy. His personal sense of horror at the treatment of the Jews during World War II is astounding. He took a personal stake in revealing and reminding people of the holocaust.
"...It would be good if Jews could live peacefully and happily in Russia, where they were born. But we must never forget about the dangers of anti-Semitism and keep reminding others of it, because the infection is still alive and who knows if it will ever disappear." (quoted from Volkov, Testimony, 158—159.)
10th Mvmt. I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zA5lv8uZHw&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL973071124207D84A
10th Mvmt. II http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZbJOE9zNjw
10th Mvmt. III http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LTGNZrkcDQ&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL973071124207D84A
10th Mvmt. IV http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFDLGj_SJRM&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL973071124207D84A
13th http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpSnWW1du0Q&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=PL541BB26B3C9099C5
Playing Cello was fun right from the beginning, but I did not awaken to the emotional impact and soulical effect it had on me until I learned Shostakovich's Sonata for Cello and Piano in D minor, Op. 40.
From then on, the world of music became a more intense place for me.
It is November 11th today and in Canada it is a time for remembering those who fight and have fought on our behalf to bring peace.
I am thankful for the heroic actions taken by our veterans to stop the violence that had infected many during WWII.
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