8th String Quartet – Shostakovich

Apparently written in 3 days. YES! That’s my kinda style lol.

I’ll be talking about the 2nd movement in this entry.

The piece has a very nationalistic sound. That is, it’s what I’d call a ‘russian chromatic’. The scale lingers on the natural 7th of a harmonic minor which is really the tension note that makes up the dominant chord of a piece in any minor. However, if you play if starting from scale degree number (i.e. G in C minor), it suddenly becomes gypsy. To make it russian then, use ‘A’ and ‘Ab’. The ‘A’ is essentially the major 6th in the scale but functions as an important chromatic colour in the piece.

The essential characteristic of this piece is the driving ostinato  in the cello which is made up of consistent quarter notes mostly throughout. If the cello does not carry the quarter note, then it is transferred to another instrument, sometimes the viola, other times the violin. This just makes it so intense, like the relentless onslaught on stalin’s ruthless dictatorship over mother Russia. Or, some other wanky metaphor to that effect.

I quite like the contrast in the melody which it suddenly takes on a gypsy like character which is essentially created by the use of the gypsy scaled. And, acciacaturas, which is very characteristic of gypsy music.

– Scott

Shostakovich – Symphony No. 10 (Mvt 1)

I thought I’d just take a look at Movement 1 (Moderato) as to provide a deeper analysis of just this movement as a opposed to a surface analysis of the whole symphony.

In terms of orchestration, a topic I’m particularly fond of, there’s a lot going on. This movement is very string driven, like most symphonies. The violins carry the theme and the woodwinds develop a counter melody. The lushness of the melody again comes from the upper strings. However, the double bass plays another counter melody to the main string party in the first section of the movement. This provides stark contrast and it adds tremendous weight to the sound, giving it a dark and almost sluggish feel.

It is a sonata-form in general, with a few variations. The piece flows very well into its different sections.

Interestingly, the symphony was written after world war II, following the death of Stalin. Upon listening, I couldn’t help but think this piece was a reflection on the conditions and circumstances of what everyday living constituted throughout that period. It kind of reminded me of deteriorating Grey russian buildings. Shostakovich throws some gypsy themes into the first movement after the 1st section, and this is reinforced with the pizz. strings and staccatos. It almost feel upbeat-ish, in a depressing and psychotic kind of way. Shortly after, there is a call and answer between the bassoon and the contra-bassoon which I found quite interesting. The contra-bassoon is an instrument not generally given it’s limelight in the orchestra. However, it is used wonderfully here as a gritty low-end woodwind almost to obtrude the sonic atmosphere of the higher woodwinds. It feels something like the calm before a storm. The piece then explodes into a wonderfully lush combination of strings, brass and heavy percussion, marking the climax and restating the theme with variations.

Overall, Symphony no. 10 is reminiscent of the harsh communist times and this is wonderfully reflected in the piece.

– Scott