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Wendy Lesser

Music for Silenced Voices: Shostakovich and His Fifteen Quartets Hardcover – March 20, 2012

by Wendy Lesser (Author)

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Most previous books about Dmitri Shostakovich have focused on either his symphonies and operas, or his relationship to the regime under which he lived, or both, since these large-scale works were the ones that attracted the interest and sometimes the condemnation of the Soviet authorities. Music for Silenced Voices looks at Shostakovich through the back door, as it were, of his fifteen quartets, the works which his widow characterized as a "diary, the story of his soul." The silences and the voices were of many kinds, including the political silencing of adventurous writers, artists, and musicians during the Stalin era; the lost voices of Shostakovich's operas (a form he abandoned just before turning to string quartets); and the death-silenced voices of his close friends, to whom he dedicated many of these chamber works.

Wendy Lesser has constructed a fascinating narrative in which the fifteen quartets, considered one at a time in chronological order, lead the reader through the personal, political, and professional events that shaped Shostakovich's singular, emblematic twentieth-century life. Weaving together interviews with the composer's friends, family, and colleagues, as well as conversations with present-day musicians who have played the quartets, Lesser sheds new light on the man and the musician. One of the very few books about Shostakovich that is aimed at a general rather than an academic audience, Music for Silenced Voices is a pleasure to read; at the same time, it is rigorously faithful to the known facts in this notoriously complicated life. It will fill readers with the desire to hear the quartets, which are among the most compelling and emotionally powerful monuments of the past century's music.

Print length

368 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Yale University Press
Publication date

March 20, 2012
Dimensions

5.5 x 1.19 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

0300169337
ISBN-13

978-0300169331
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Music for Silenced Voices is a sensitive and enlightening meditation. . . . Lesser, in other words, is giving Shostakovich back to his listeners.”—Paul Mitchinson, Washington Post (Paul Mitchinson The Washington Post)

“Riveting.”—Laurence Vittes, The Huffington Post (Laurence Vittes The Huffington Post)

“This book is a paean to Shostakovich’s quartets and their significance. In her listening, Lesser…is literate, sensitive, and imaginative.”—Edward Rothstein, The New York Times Book Review (Edward Rothstein The New York Times Book Review)

“Lesser has written a sensitive biography…a generous reflection on his life and chamber music.”—Michael O’Donnell, The Nation (Michael O'Donnell The Nation)

"An elegant, thought-provoking synthesis of the current state of knowledge and ideas about one of the most celebrated and controversial composers of the twentieth century. It is a delight to read, and reread."—Laurel E. Fay (Laurel E. Fay)

"Lesser moves between looking at the life as a way of understanding the quartets, and using the music of the quartets as a way of comprehending the complexities of Shostakovich and the manner in which he both negotiated and was pushed through the history of Stalin’s Soviet Union. The always imprecise links between a life and the work that comes out of it are beautifully elucidated. The idea of the quartets as songs for not singing resonates with many other elements of Shostakovich’s contradictory life."—William Kentridge (William Kentridge)

“Wendy Lesser has written a fantastic book that is as exciting as a detective story. Music for Silenced Voices is a book for those who love Shostakovich and also for those who are going to love Shostakovich after they read it. A must read.”—Menahem Pressler
(Menahem Pressler)

"A sensitive biography. . . . Her enthusiasm for the quartets is infectious."—Michael O'Donnell, The Nation (Michael O'Donnell The Nation)

"What makes Lesser's book such a ripping good read, in addition to deeply considered music appreciation, is her intelligently personal involvement with the subject."—Jonathan Kiefer, SF Weekly (Jonathan Kiefer SF Weekly)

"A sensitive and enlightening meditation. . . . Lesser is giving Shostakovich back to his listeners."—Paul Mitchinson, The Washington Post (Paul Mitchinson The Washington Post)

“A book of musical and biographical insight.”—Jewish Book World (Jewish Book World)

Winner of the 2011 American Publishers Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence (PROSE) in the Performing Arts category, as given by the Association of American Publishers (PROSE Award in Music and the Performing Arts Association of American Publishers 2012-02-02)

"An essential companion for anyone planning to hear the quartets."—Ed Vuillamy, Guardian (Ed Vuillamy Guardian)

"We need to find new approaches in order to bring music into the mainstream of general culture, where it belongs. Music for Silenced Voices helps to show that this can be done, and done well."—Jessica Duchen, Standpoint (Jessica Duchen Standpoint)

About the Author

Wendy Lesser, the editor of The Threepenny Review, is the author of seven previous nonfiction books and one novel. She divides her year between Berkeley and New York.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Yale University Press; 1st Edition (March 20, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0300169337
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0300169331
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.2 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1.19 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,012,005 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #590 in Classical Musician Biographies
- #4,444 in Classical Music (Books)

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Wendy Lesser

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Wendy Lesser was born in 1952 in California, where she grew up. She attended Harvard University, Cambridge University, and UC Berkeley, earning a PhD in English from Berkeley in 1982. Though she has taught on occasion (at UC Santa Cruz, Princeton University, and Hunter College, among other places), she has mainly supported herself over the years as a writer, editor, and consultant. From 1976 to 1980 she and her friend Katharine Ogden worked as public policy consultants through their firm Lesser & Ogden Associates. In 1980 Lesser founded The Threepenny Review, which she still edits; it has become one of the most respected and long-lasting literary magazines in America. She is the author of eleven books (including one novel, two memoirs, several works of literary or cultural studies, and two biographies) and the editor of two. She also writes book, dance, art, and music reviews for a variety of publications in this country and abroad, dividing her year between Berkeley and New York so as to cover cultural activities on both coasts. Lesser is married to Richard Rizzo and has one son, Nick Rizzo.

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Bahij Bawarshi

Adagio: An act of remembrance

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 19, 2015

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The chapters of Wendy Lesser's book on the string quartets of Shostakovich carry the same titles, and are arranged in the same order, as those of the six consecutive Adagio movements of the Fifteenth Quartet: Elegy - Serenade - Intermezzo - Nocturne - Funeral March - Epilogue. As I glanced at the Contents when I first opened the book, I wondered why and kept wondering as I read through the book to the end.

I find a clue in something Dr. Sigrid Neef has written concerning the Fifteenth Quartet in her excellent liner notes for the complete set of Shostakovich's quartets by Borodin Quartet (BMG-Melodiya): "In the wake of Tchaikovsky, Adagio was not simply a tempo marking in Russian music but a mode of musical thinking implying an act of remembrance." Ms. Lesser includes herself among those who have felt that Shostakovich may have known that the end was near, and in the Fifteenth Quartet, his last, had written an elegy to himself (p. 261). Doesn't a true elegiac work imply looking back and commemoration as well? In borrowing the titles, then, has she intended a book that is itself a literary 'Adagio', an act of remembrance honoring the life and works of Shostakovich?

For her it had to be "the life first then the music." She goes on, "Only after learning something of the biography have I been able to hear what was there all along in the quartets." She says it after having accepted that "for the most part the life is a smoke screen that gets between you and the art." Of correct interpretation, "[E]ven the artist is not the ultimate authority in this regard, for he may well have given rise to something that is larger than his own intentions." To interpret Shostakovich, it is "especially important to keep the known facts in mind, precisely because falsehood, dishonesty, and misrepresentation were such devastating issues in his life." The Acknowledgments give an idea of how far she went to gather facts, memories and impressions of Shostakovichh and his music to aid her in writing a selective biography of the composer, with the string quartets at its heart.

One thing becomes obvious as you go through the pages, and that is Lesser's love for the quartets, an impression that only intensifies the further you read. To her, Shostakovich's own voice is most clearly heard in them, something that is shared by many (including myself). Reflecting the dark experiences of this "tortured and self-torturing man", as she calls him, the music sounds personal and introspective with anxiety defining many of the quartets' movements, even some of the more placid ones. Biographical details, memoirs and anecdotes preface each of the 15 quartets that she discusses. The discussions mirror the viewpoint of an experienced, devoted listener who understands music and musical terms, but not that of a musician or musicologist, for she is not one. Yet I would have liked to read, for example, something on how Shostakovich used musical forms to convey his message, if there was one. Take one quartet, the Sixth. Lesser writes of the third movement's "strongest melancholy tone, the deepest sense of an underlying sorrow"; but she doesn't mention that it was written in passacaglia form, the significance of which is brought out by Dr. Sigrid Neef, describing the same quartet: "The third movement remembers the dead. Ever since the Eighth Symphony of 1943, Shostakovich had chosen the form of the passacaglia - a set of variations on an unvarying ground - as a symbol of grief and remembrance."

Lesser often refers to klezmer music in the quartets, and cites the opinion of conductor Kurt Sanderling that Shsotakovich used Jewish melodies to express tragic experiences. Diverging from the prevalent interpretation, she accepts Shostakovich's dedication of the Eighth Quartet "in memory of the victims of fascism and war", when most commentators think the quartet was really autobiographical. She explains the klezmer elements in the quartet by pointing out that Jews were the victims of fascism - which is true; and adds, as were the Germans of Dresden the victims of war - also true. Yet somehow she does not mention the many millions of Russian victims of that same war (the exact number is disputed), as if Shostakovich would not have remembered his own people. A curious omission.

The Epilogue discusses people's interaction with these quartets, how their emotional power comes out when performed before an audience, and includes sections on truth and irony in Shostakovich's music; his use of allusions; his sense of shame; of humor; recurrent melancholy; and the silences in the music, which Lesser likens to white areas on a painting's canvass. At times she adopts a philosophical tone; at all times her direct, clear style is pleasurable to read.

Music for Silenced Voices is a fine, thoughtful book, not without its minor flaws, worth reading and re-reading by anyone interested in Shostakovich, his life and music.

9 people found this helpful

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Davyd Booth

Great book

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 21, 2022

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Incredible touching bio of great composer as told through his 15 string quartets. Wonderful

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ifutureman

Up to the challenge of its subject

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 14, 2011

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My review of this fine book is unavoidably influenced by the fact that I have been a huge fan of Shostakovich for many years, and not all Shostakovich either ... yep, it's his string quartets that speak to me so personally. Imagine my excitement when I learned about Music For Silenced Voices.

The title is aptly chosen; while his symphonies were often carefully written to avoid disfavor with the Communist regime, Shostakovich felt no such need to censor or disguise himself in the fifteen string quartets he composed during the last four decades of his life. Shostakovich's Russia was a country defined by its government - a gray, faceless world of ministries and bureaucrats. The brilliant composer suffered the indignity of having his work criticized and even suppressed by Stalin and his stooges, if the powers-that-be decided that the work failed to adequately promote nationalistic ideals.

Such a completely irrational set of rules and restrictions silenced some, but not all, of Shostakovich's voice. Of necessity in order to have his music heard at all, he made sometimes major concessions in his large-scale writing. But the composer's quartets allowed him to create music that was often darker, but somehow more personal, in my opinion, than most of his symphonic work.

How does a book like this manage to turn the exquisite sound of the fifteen quartets into a narrative? Again, I must claim a bias; I already love this music, so I am probably inclined to be generous here. I do believe that Wendy Lesser has done a superb job of collecting source material to tell a very specific story. The events (both personal and global) that took place during his life were always sure to leave their mark on the mood of Shostokovich's work. It is enlightening to trace the master's artistic achievements against the events of his lifetime.

I can't really say how engaging this book could be for someone who has never heard at least some of the music first, although it certainly paints a moving picture of a man tormented by fear, capable of weakness and strength, driven to create even in the most stifling conditions.

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Kernicterus

Great book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 6, 2020

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I wasn’t sure what to expect but I thoroughly enjoyed the book. She openly admits that she’s not a musician, however, her grasp of music and musicology is exceptional.

Some of the areas of the book read like a thesis, ‘he said, she said, I feel ...’ but this works when addressing all of the different opinions and writings of Shostakovich’s life, nobody really knows.

What this book has also done for me is introduce me to the works of Weinberg and to the Quartets of Bartók, and that is certainly no bad thing.

Many thanks for the book.

Joan Josep Vallbé

Good read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 18, 2017

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This is a good read. I agree with some other commenters that the book is quite impressionistic. First, the author puts each of Shostakovich quartets in the context of the composer's work and life. Second, Lesser comments what each quartet brings to her. I would have preferred that these comments include some technical appraisal, but what Lesser does she does well. The book is a beautiful guide to a particularly impressive part of Shostakovich's work.

2 people found this helpful

Raquelita

Now listening more deeeply

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 8, 2012

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After reading Lesser's book I began listening to the Quartets more deeply. Also interested in Shostakovich's relationship with the quartet that premiered his works and Lesser's discussion of how S led his life during the USSR's dark years. I followed up by ordering a copy for my son.

2 people found this helpful

Caliban

Etwas irre, aber für die Orientierung hilfreich

Reviewed in Germany 🇩🇪 on June 3, 2011

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In Deutschland würde sich wahrscheinlich kein Autor an ein solches Buch wagen. Gegenstand sind die Streichquartette von Schostakowitsch. Allerdings geht es dabei nicht um eine musikwissenschaftliche Analyse, sondern um eine Art Erlebnisbericht der Autorin beim Hören bekannter Plattenaufnahmen dieser Werke. Das Buch ist deshalb auch kein klassischer Kommentar der einzelnen Quartette, sondern ein übergreifender Erlebnisbericht, in dem die historischen Umstände der Entstehung der Werke (z.T. mit Originalzitaten aus Anordnungen Shdanows usw.) und biographischen Notizen zum Komponisten illustriert werden. In diesen Kontext fügt die Autorin dann ihr persönliches Erleben dieser Werke ein. Über das Quartett Nr. 3 heißt es etwa (S. 79 f.) in meiner Übersetzung: "Wenn ich die Einspielung des Emerson- oder Borodin-Quartetts höre, zweier Ensembles die mein Verständnis dieses Werkes stark geprägt haben, empfinde ich am Anfang ein Gefühl ungetrübter Kindheit zu Beginn; am Ende aber - im abschließenden Adagio - eine Balance aus Sorge und Lebensfreude, Trost und Verzweifelung."

Lohnt sich das Werk trotz solcher "Eingebungen"; ich würde sagen: mit Einschränkungen. Denn bei den Streichquartetten Schostakowitschs handelt es sich mit Ausnahme des 8., um sehr introvertierte Werke, die sich anders als die Symphonien einem direkten Zugang sperren. Ich selbst besitze die Aufnahme des Emerson- und des Borodin-Quartetts, bin aber aus diesen Werken - anders als aus den noch wesentlich herberen und sperrigeren Bartok-Werken - nie wirklich schlau geworden. Das vorliegende Werk liefert dem Leser etwas zum historischen Kontext der Stücke, lässt diese in ihrer Individualität und aus den besonderen Zeitumständen heraustreten. Für den laienhaften Liebhaber füllt es so eine bedauernswerte Lücke, nicht perfekt, aber immerhin in brauchbarer Weise.

3 people found this helpful

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Ron Peters

A Useful Guidebook

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on September 13, 2014

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Of course I assume you're interested in Shostakovich and hist strong quartets to begin with! :-) Given that, the chapters in this book provide an excellent guide, swinging back and forth between Shostakovich's life story at the time he wrote the quartet, political and societal events in the Soviet Union, and a discussion of the music itself. A nice guide, and a good excuse to work your way once again through the full set.

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Music for Silenced Voices: Shostakovich and His Fifteen Quartets Hardcover – March 20, 2012

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