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Re: Shostakovich
Bonnie,
First of all let me just say thanks to everyone who replied to
the Shostakovich question. I was amazed at how much information was
presented, and how quickly.
As far as my conjecture about GG's attitude is concerned, its
mostly based on things Gould has said concerning his musical taste. I
don't claim to be a GG expert, and if I misunderstand or misinterpret GG
I hope someone will promptly set me straight, I'm not sure where, but I
seem to remember GG being quoted as saying something to the effect of
"Most, well, not most, ALL of the music I am interested in is
contrapuntal." While I realize that from some perspectives everything
but absolute monody could be called contrapuntal, I would hesitate to
call Shostakovich a contrapuntalist by GG's standards. Shostakovich is,
in my opinion, more along the lines of Bartok, who GG was known to
dislike ("the most overrated composer of this century").
I have a great affection for Shostakovich's works, but it is
surpassed by my admiration of GG, so it is more of a guilty pleasure
nowadays. When I listen to Shostakovich, I hear the the influences of
Folk music and a tendency towards "vertical" composition which doesn't
seem to have a place in GG's musical taste. I suppose, to put it
succinctly, there's just not enough going on.
Sorry to carry on, perhaps next time I'll be better organized in my
presentation!
Regards,
Jeremy