Product Features

• Label: Мелодия – 74321 40711 2
• Format: 6 x CD, Stereo, Box Set
• Genre: Classical
• Style: Modern
• Country: Europe
• Released: 2001

Overview

Dmitri Shostakovich's profound contributions to the classical music canon are presented in this expansive 6-disc box set, featuring the Borodin Quartet and renowned pianist Sviatoslav Richter. This collection includes Shostakovich's 15 string quartets, spanning his entire creative period, alongside his exceptional Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op.57, showcasing the depth and complexity of his modernist style. A true treasure for both seasoned classical aficionados and new listeners, the set reveals the evolution of Shostakovich's musical language, from his early, somewhat neoclassical works to his late quartets, full of political subtext and emotional intensity.

Sviatoslav Richter’s masterful piano performance in the Piano Quintet, paired with the Borodin Quartet’s meticulous interpretation of the quartets, elevates this box set to a must-have for lovers of 20th-century classical music.

Track Listing

Disc 1:

• String Quartet No. 1 in C Major, Op.49 (1935) – 14:24
• String Quartet No. 2 in A Major, Op.68 (1944) – 38:15
• String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op.83 (1949) – 25:14
• String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op.73 (1946) – 33:48

Disc 2:

• Two Pieces for Strings Octet, Op.11 – 10:34
• Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op.57 (1945) – 35:20
• String Quartet No. 5 in B Flat Major, Op.92 (1952) – 31:40

Disc 3:

• String Quartet No. 6 in G Major, Op.101 (1956) – 24:12
• String Quartet No. 7 in F Sharp Minor, Op.108 (1960) – 12:30
• String Quartet No. 8 in C Minor, Op.110 (1960) – 21:57

Disc 4:

• String Quartet No. 9 in E Flat Major, Op.117 (1964) – 26:38
• String Quartet No. 10 in A Flat Major, Op.118 (1964) – 24:20

Disc 5:

• String Quartet No. 11 in F Minor, Op.122 (1966) – 18:08
• String Quartet No. 12 in D Flat, Op.133 (1968) – 27:30
• String Quartet No. 13 in B Flat Minor, Op.138 (1970) – 19:56

Disc 6:

• String Quartet No. 14 in F Sharp Major, Op.142 (1973) – 28:25
• String Quartet No. 15 in E Flat Minor, Op.144 (1974) – 36:27

Key Credits

• Composer: Dmitri Shostakovich
• Piano: Sviatoslav Richter (Tracks 2-8 to 2-12)
• Ensemble: Borodin Quartet, Prokofiev Quartet (Tracks 2-6 to 2-7)
• Cello: Valentin Berlinsky (Borodin Quartet)
• Viola: Dmitri Shebalin (Borodin Quartet)
• Violin 1: Mikhail Kopelman (Borodin Quartet)
• Violin 2: Andrei Abramenkov (Borodin Quartet)
• Recording Engineers: E. Shakhnazaryan, I. Veprintsev, V. Skoblo
• Liner Notes: M. Yakubov
• Design and Layout: BKMS, Hamburg
• Producer: Niels Høirup