Shostakovich skills

Music@Menlo blog

'Well, he was married three times - not bad for a shy man with glasses,' says pianist Liza Stepanova of Shostakovich as she introduces her performance of the Sonata for cello and piano in D minor at the prelude performance series this afternoon.

Saucy Shostakovich was a passionate man, known to have had affairs and fallen in love with several women. This did wonders for his artistry, and this piece captures the emotional turmoil of his relationships in the early 1930s.

Cellist Sunny Yang and Stepanova effectively captured the varying levels of emotion - from the frenzied longing of the second movement to the pensive reflection in the third. It was a fantastic performance, let down only by the acoustics of the venue (primarily built to be a lecture theatre, not concert hall).

It's hard to believe these prelude concerts are free, no wonder the line forms quickly...