Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 2
The first piece I will ever introduce on the radio! Sunday, February 13th at 9pm on KDFC in San Francisco
The first piece I will ever introduce on the radio! Listen into KDFC in San Francisco on Sunday, February 13th at 9pm. My shift is from 9-11pm.
How To Listen:
Easiest is to download the KDFC app on iOS or Android and press play!
KDFC broadcasts on 90.3 FM San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland; 89.9 FM Napa/Sonoma; 92.5 FM Ukiah-Lakeport; 104.9 FM in Silicon Valley and the South Bay; and 103.9 FM Monterey/Carmel. 104.9 FM is broadcast in digital HD.
Find KDFC on iHeart Radio or TuneIn
Listen on the KDFC website
*****
One of those Shostakovich pieces that is full of wit and humor, as opposed to the lurking terror that often sits below the surface of his work. Shostakovich wrote the piece as a graduation gift for his son Maxim, who was finishing his studies at the Moscow Conservatory. He filled the music with inside jokes, only to be understood between father and son.
Movements 1 and 3 are a cross between a military march and a party. I love the way Shostakovich uses snare drum to accentuate and compliment the staccato (short and poking) rhythms in the piano.
The second movement is simply stunning, an enchantingly slow movement where the piano holds your hand through the night. The highlight of the whole work.
The recording is also interesting this time around, because the conductor is Maxim Shostakovich (son) and the pianist is Dmitri Shostakovich Jr. (grandson). So, THREE members of the Shostakovich family are represented in a single recording!
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