The 'Old Shostakovich': Reception in the British Press

Brothers in musical arms: the wartime correspondence of Dmitrii Shostakovich and Henry Wood

“…Soviet institutions like the Rubinstein (later Glinka) Museum of Musical Culture were able to demonstrate how highly regarded Russian and Soviet music was abroadand by raising Wood's profile to visitors to their exhibition, they simultaneously reinforced national pride in the greatness of "their" Shostakovich and of Soviet culture generally. Though Shostakovich's British reputation would grow exponentially after 1953 (when Soviet musicians were able to travel to Londonsee Fairclough: 2007), the war years demonstrated that the Soviet Union had what Britain (arguably) did not: a truly great symphonic composer whose music was popular with audiences. There could be no single more effective strategy for implying the superior success of Soviet art policiesand the ramifications of this would echo down British musical life throughout the Cold War, as British critics wrestled with the unpopularity of the post-war avant-garde in Britain.…”

“…Shostakovich went from a little-known composer in Britain to a household name, although his reputation there as a top-level composer would not be secured until the greater freedoms of the post-Stalin era allowed British critics to hear Soviet musicians perform some of his greatest works (Fairclough: 2007). British government officials apparently soon realized that You probably know that we are starting in Moscow a British journal to be printed in Russian the purpose of which is to tell the Russians something about our life here in the hope of cementing the friendship now so happily begun and converting it into something solid and permanent that will serve as a basis for world peace in the future.…”

“Forces for peace because of the magic in them”: Processes of Anglo-Soviet musical exchange c.1959-1974

“…Before the Second World War, even compositions by the USSR's most celebrated composer, Dmitrii Shostakovich, had seldom been heard in Britain. 16 In the absence of formal agreements, musical exchanges in this period were initiated by British-Soviet 'friendship' societies, who arranged cultural events such as lectures, publications and screenings. 17 Nevertheless, such societies never succeeded in bringing Soviet culture into the mainstream as they primarily appealed to so-called 'fellow travellers' who sympathised with Soviet socialism.…”

"Our Friend Alan Bush": Alan Bush and Soviet Musicology

“…Unfortunately, I was not able to find any replies in the Soviet journal, so the interest on the Soviet side might have been only moderate. But, of course, it was a great honour and a sign of confidence that Alan Bush as a foreign author was selected for the main article in this issue 8 .…”

“…He was so impressed by the Soviet 1948 decree 3 that he himself tried to 1 The quotation refers to the title of two different articles by Grigory Shneerson [1] and Boris Kotlyarov [2]. 2 For example, Pauline Fairclough mentions Shostakovichperformances conducted by Alan Bush [8]. 3 For instance, he expressed his approval of this decree in an article: "The 'Decision' is, indeed, a remarkable document.…”