Classical Ping
I am not to fond of Shostakovich, never have been. Every time that hear the term, cognitive dissonance, I think of his music, or what he calls music.
Bach, Brahms, Beethoven and Strauss were forbidden to be played in Milwaukee during WWII. What a loss!
Then there are the Four Last Songs . . .
Many older guys in Germany thought they had the Nazis pegged: young, crude guys who like marching and shouting, but who are basically OK. They only found out their error after 1933.
That’s a wonderful story about the oboe concerto. BTT
Strauss, in 1948, wrote “Four Last Songs,” recorded by Lucia Popp twice - first in her prime with Tennstedt conducting, and again mere weeks before her death with Michael Tilson Thomas. This was probably the most sublime music he ever wrote, and well worth a listen.