Susan Tomes in Bantry House - June, 2001

from Visiting Ireland: West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Bantry, June 2001, page 105:

I attend a masterclass given to a group of Irish students by Valentin Berlinsky, cellist of the Borodin Quartet for 55 years, on good terms with Stalin, and a friend of Shostakovich - therefore one of the few people left who can remember what Shostakovich said about his music. He speaks quietly and dogmatically, though from time to time he assures the youngsters that they 'must find their own way'. That doesn't seem like an option though.

He strictly controls their tempi and their pauses, occasionally delivering a crushing, 'Not very good'. He tells them it's hard for anyone who …   more >>

cite as

Susan Tomes, Visiting Ireland: West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Bantry, June 2001. In Beyond the notes : journeys with chamber music (Woodbridge, 2004), p. 105. https://led.kmi.open.ac.uk/entity/lexp/1403463666479 accessed: 30 October, 2024

location of experience: Bantry House

Listeners

Susan Tomes
Pianist, Writer
1954-

Listening to

hide composers
unspecified string quartet
written by Dmitri Shostakovich

Experience Information

Date/Time June, 2001
Medium live
Listening Environment in the company of others, in private, indoors

Originally submitted by iepearson on Sun, 22 Jun 2014 20:01:06 +0100
Approved on Tue, 18 Aug 2015 15:58:08 +0100