Shostakovich, much
like Johannes Brahms, was amazingly
capable of condensing the power of a
symphony orchestra, and of expressing
an equal power and emotional scope through
the medium of a chamber ensemble. Such
is the case with these two early-ish
works, ably presented by Elisabeth Leonskaja
and the Borodin String Quartet.
After the success of
his first string quartet in 1938, the
members of the Beethoven Quartet immediately
called upon Shostakovich to compose
another work for them. The result was
the G minor quintet, which the composer
and the Beethovens premiered in 1940.
The work was a major critical success
and was awarded the first ever Stalin
Prize.
Highly traditional
in its structure, the work is as much
a suite of ancient forms as it is harmonically
original and innovative. Shostakovich
never ceases to amaze listeners with
his uncanny perception of timbre, and
the ways in which he can exploit the
tonal capabilities of the instruments
for which he writes. This is never more
evident than in the ghostly Fugue, which
calls for a lengthy passage with the
strings muted.
Likewise, in the later
Trio, Op. 67, the composer makes use
of interesting effects when he requires
that the cello play the entire opening
song in the first movement, using harmonics
and thus making it the treble instrument
and the violin the bass. Shostakovich
exorcised quite a few demons in the
writing of this piece, having seen the
terror of the Second World War and the
havoc it wreaked in his homeland, and
having lost two of the major figures
in his life to an early death. This
is also the work that would see the
composer utilizing Jewish folk melodies
as his source of inspiration, a habit
that would last through several more
compositions, until the official Stalinist
anti-Semitism would make it physically
unsafe for him to continue the practice.
These are remarkably
well-executed performances, with all
of the Russian gusto that you might
expect from such a group of musicians.
Of particular merit is the special attention
paid to colors and shadings of tone
by both pianist and string players.
Every detail of the score has been thoroughly
thought through and the give and take
between the members is outstanding.
Production values are
somewhat haphazard. Sound quality is
what one would expect from a company
of Teldec’s reputation: superb. However
some important corners were cut in this
lower-price reissue, the most egregious
of which is the complete absence of
the names of the members of the Borodin
Quartet. Program notes are informative
and concise, always a plus. A highly
recommendable performance of two of
the last century’s major chamber works.
Kevin Sutton
Elisabeth Leonskaja, piano 
