The Music of Dimitri Shostakovich Quiz

Answer: Modern / 20th Century

Shostakovich's first published composition was released in 1919, and his last in 1975, placing him firmly within the domain of the 20th century. His music is characteristic of the 20th century in terms of harmony, treatment of the melody, texture, and form. While he never abandoned tonality, much of his music defies conventional or dominant harmonic analysis; in other words his music is highly chromatic.

The Baroque refers to the period of roughly 1600-1750, the Classical era is roughly 1750-1800, and the Romantic era is roughly 1800-1900 - all of these eras had definitely ended before Shostakovich started writing music.

Answer: Mitstislav Rostropovich

All of the answers are (or were) virtuoso cellists of the twentieth century, however Rostropovich did more than anyone to expand the cello repertoire, and commissioned / premiered numerous significant cello pieces in addition to Shostakovich's first concerto. In a National Public Radio interview in the wake of Rostropovich's 2007 death, Ma stated that his inspiration to take up the cello came when he heard a recording of Rostropovich playing Shostakovich's first cello concerto.

Pablo Casals likely performed this work (although I have not heard a recording of it), however his major claim to fame is popularizing J.S. Bach's six suites for solo cello in the 1930s. Maria Kliegel is less well known than the other three, but her recording of the Shostakovich concerto is well regarded.

Answer: A musical device Shostakovich used to refer to himself.

The DCSH motif is named by the notes from which it is built - D, E flat, C, and B, which in the German musical alphabet are known as D, Es, C, H. The German Spelling of his last name is Schostakovich, so D. Sch. is short for his name. Several other composers have hidden messages in German notation.

The motif forms the basis of the entire Cello Concerto No. 1, and is also seen in several other works, including String Quartet No. 8, and Symphonies No. 10 and 15.

DSCH is sometimes used simply to refer to the composer in writing.

Answer: Leningrad

Symphony No. 7, Op. 60 in C major, is usually known as 'Leningrad.' It was composed during the German siege of Leningrad in 1941, and is generally interpreted as being highly programmatic, with the opening theme representing the heroic Russian standing unbowed, and the major contrasting theme representing the German military machine. Shostakovich himself dedicated the symphony to the people of Leningrad.

In a contemporary review of the symphony, Nicolas Slonimsky wrote "Shostakovich regards it as his primary duty to serve his people, as a fire fighter if necessary, as a musician, if he can." Shostakovich had served as a fire marshal in Leningrad before being evacuated out over the German lines with the Leningrad Orchestra in 1942.

Answer: "Lady MacBeth" and "The Sparkling Brook"

Although his opera "Lady MacBeth of Mtsensk" had enjoyed a two year run at that point, a January 28, 1936 article in Pravda attacked it as being reflective of bourgeois ideals. Shortly thereafter, on February 6, 1936, Pravda attacked his ballet "The Sparkling Brook" for what it deemed to be a frivolous treatment of Soviet subject matter.

These attacks led many music critics in Russia and abroad to believe that his career was ended.

Answer: Symphony No. 5

Symphony No. 4 was an attempt to redeem himself from the disaster of early 1936, however it was poorly received and he withdrew it from rehearsal.

Symphony No. 5 still stands as one of Shostakovich's towering achievements and enjoys an unassailable position in the symphonic canon. Upon its November 21, 1937 premiere, Russian critic Ostretzov declared the fifth symphony represented Shostakovich's "liberation from individualistic chaos and formalistic experimentation." It was a work of 'pure music' - lacking the Revolutionary program attached to his earlier symphonies and missing a choral ending, however, even so, it has been interpreted as music of the Russian Revolution, with Slonimsky arguing that "the Fifth Symphony comes nearest to being a translation of Beethoven into the language of present-day Russia."

While his Symphony No. 1 was wildly popular, it did not redeem him because he needed no redeeming at the time; it was written incident to his graduation from the Leningrad Conservatory in 1926- a decade before his short fall from grace. In much the same vein, Symphony No. 7 was also immediately beloved, however he had already climbed back atop the world of Russian music by that point.

Answer: Symphony No. 2

Symphony No. 2 did not receive tremendous acclaim when it was released, but it is still performed today. It is titled "October" in reference to the month of the Russian Revolution. In a particularly proletarian mode, the symphony even calls for a factory whistle at one point in the score, although Shostakovich indicated it could be replaced by four horns, three trombones, and a tuba playing in unison.

Despite its minimal popularity, it is representative of Shostakovich's symphonic tendencies.

Answer: Gustav Mahler

Shostakovich's symphonic output was a logical extension of Mahler's massive symphonies, and the linear evolution of the symphony between the two composers is exceeded perhaps only by the succession of Beethoven - Brahms - Dvorak. Mahler grew the orchestra to sizes it had never before reached. His Symphony No. 8 "Of a Thousand" is so named because of the immense number of performers required, including a tremendous ten horns. The modern eighty-plus member symphony is a direct product of Mahler, and numerous works composed prior to its advent have been re-scored for the larger orchestra, including Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. Mahler's symphonies were monsters in duration, intensity, and the sheer size of the ensemble.

Mahler's popularity is not universal. Many people have criticized his symphonic works for their length and massive scale from essentially the moment they premiered. One contemporary critic of Shostakovich derided him as "at best, the third pressing of Mahler."

Answer: Boris Gudounov

Boris Gudounov was written by another influential Russian composer, Modest Mussorgsky. Of the three operas Shostakovich did write, "Lady MacBeth" is the best known.

Answer: Russia

Shostakovich was a Russian who lived his adult life during the Soviet period. Unlike a number of his contemporaries in Soviet music, he did not spend a significant amount of time outside of the U.S.S.R.