String Quartet No. 3 (Shostakovich)

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Dmitri Shostakovich's String Quartet No. 3 in F major (Op. 73) was composed in 1946 after his Symphony No. 9 was censured by Soviet authorities. It was premiered in Moscow by the Beethoven Quartet, to whom it is dedicated, in December 1946. The work was furiously denounced due to the horrors the music portrays and because it ends on a very ambiguous note that does not conclude the piece. Some critics went as far as accusing Shostakovich of hiding coded subversive messages against Stalin within it.

The quartet is composed of 5 movements:

1. Allegretto
2. Moderato con moto
3. Allegro non troppo
4. Adagio
5. Moderato

Playing time is approximately 33 minutes.

For the premier, most likely so that he would not be accused of "formalism" or "elitism," Shostakovich renamed the movements in the manner of a war story:

1. Blithe ignorance of the future cataclysm
2. Rumblings of unrest and anticipation
3. Forces of war unleashed
4. In memory of the dead
5. The eternal question: Why? And for what?

A chamber symphony arrangement (Op. 73a) had been made of this quartet by Rudolph Barshai with Shostakovich's permission. It calls for flute, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bassoon, harp, and strings. It adds winds for tonal color and strength in the style of Shostakovich's symphonies. Some critics argue that it is better than the original composition itself.

[edit] Recordings

• The Moyzes Quartet, OPUS 1988

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