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Solomon Moiseyevich Volkov (russian: Соломон Моисеевич Волков; born 17 April 1944) is a Russian journalist and
musicologist
Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...
. He is best known for ''
Testimony
In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter.
Etymology
The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness.
...
'', which was published in 1979 following his emigration from the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
in 1976. He claimed that the book was the memoir of
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throug ...
, as related to him by the composer.
Life
Volkov was born in Uroteppa (Russian: ''Ura-Tyube'', now
Istaravshan
Istaravshan ( tg, Истаравшан; fa, استروشن; russian: Истаравшан) is a city in Sughd Province in Tajikistan. In 2000, the Tajik government changed the name of the city from earlier Uroteppa ( tg, Ӯротеппа; ''Ura- ...
), near Leninabad (now
Khujand
Khujand ( tg, Хуҷанд, Khujand; Uzbek: Хўжанд, romanized: Хo'jand; fa, خجند, Khojand), sometimes spelled Khodjent and known as Leninabad (russian: Ленинабад, Leninabad; tg, Ленинобод, Leninobod; fa, لن ...
),
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
. He studied violin at the
Leningrad Conservatory
The N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov Saint Petersburg State Conservatory (russian: Санкт-Петербургская государственная консерватория имени Н. А. Римского-Корсакова) (formerly known as th ...
, receiving his diploma with honors in 1967. He continued graduate work in
musicology
Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...
there until 1971. He also served as artistic director of the Experimental Studio of Chamber Opera.
He went to the United States in June 1976. Early on, he was a research associate at the Russian Institute of
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
. He lives in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
with his wife, Marianna (née Tiisnekka), a pianist and photographer. He is also a United States citizen.
Expertise
His primary area of expertise has been the history and aesthetics of Russian and Soviet music, as well as the psychology of musical perception and performance. He published numerous articles in scholarly and popular journals and wrote the book ''Young Composers of Leningrad'' in 1971. This book, which contained a preface by Shostakovich, was reportedly well received.
Since taking residence in the United States, he has written various articles for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', ''
The New Republic
''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...
'', ''
Musical America
''Musical America'' is the oldest American magazine on classical music, first appearing in 1898 in print and in 1999 online, at musicalamerica.com. It is published by Performing Arts Resources, LLC, of East Windsor, New Jersey.
History 1898–19 ...
'', ''
The Musical Quarterly
''The Musical Quarterly'' is the oldest academic journal on music in America. Originally established in 1915 by Oscar Sonneck, the journal was edited by Sonneck until his death in 1928. Sonneck was succeeded by a number of editors, including Ca ...
'' and other publications.
Controversy over ''Testimony''
Volkov's book ''Testimony'' (
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
: ''Свидетельство''), which Volkov claims represents the memoirs of Shostakovich, was published in October 1979.
''Testimony'' prompted a continuing debate over its authenticity and accuracy. Some say that the words of Dmitri Shostakovich are indeed presented in the book. Unfortunately it is difficult without access to Volkov's original notes (left behind when Volkov emigrated and apparently lost or destroyed) to ascertain where Shostakovich ends and Volkov possibly begins. Ever since the American scholar Laurel E. Fay demonstrated that the beginning of each chapter closely parallels earlier published texts by Shostakovich, musicologists have remained divided on the value of ''Testimony''. Questions about ''Testimony's'' authenticity are summarized in Malcolm H. Brown's book ''A Shostakovich Casebook'' (2004), whereas a defense of the memoirs and their authenticity is presented in Allan B. Ho and Dmitry Feofanov's ''Shostakovich Reconsidered'' (1998). The latter also have written ''The Shostakovich Wars'', a 220-page long response to Brown's ''Shostakovich Casebook''.
Some have asserted the book's authenticity due to Shostakovich's son
Maxim
Maxim or Maksim may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Maxim'' (magazine), an international men's magazine
** ''Maxim'' (Australia), the Australian edition
** ''Maxim'' (India), the Indian edition
*Maxim Radio, ''Maxim'' magazine's radio channel on Sir ...
's alleged about-face on the accuracy of the book. After he defected to the West in 1981, he told the ''
Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' that it was a book "about my father, not by him". However, in a
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
television interview with composer
Michael Berkeley
Michael Fitzhardinge Berkeley, Baron Berkeley of Knighton, (born 29 May 1948) is an English composer, broadcaster on music and member of the House of Lords.
Early life
Berkeley is the eldest of the three sons of Elizabeth Freda (née Bernstein ...
on 27 September 1986, Maxim admitted, "It's true. It's accurate.... The basis of the book is correct." Fay has alleged that whilst Maxim admits that the general context of the times and what it would have been to live as a composer under Soviet rule are generally correct, that Shostakovich's individual portrait was "grossly misconstrued", and hence, whilst praising the book for highlighting the potential hardships of living under totalitarianism, nevertheless has repeatedly maintained his claim that "it
'Testimony''was a book about my father, not by him" — in short, that in his opinion the book cannot be treated as Shostakovich's memoirs, so much as a book about what Shostakovich may have been like.
Contrary to Fay, Maxim's statements and actions after the
fall of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...
in 1991 reflect his personal endorsement of ''Testimony'' and Volkov. To Dmitry Feofanov, Maxim emphasized repeatedly in 1997: "I am a supporter both of ''Testimony'' and of Volkov." Maxim also was the guest of honor at the launching of the Czech edition of the memoirs in 2005 and, with his sister
Galina
Galina, Halyna, or Halina (russian: Галина; from Greek ''γαλήνη'' "Serenity") is an East Slavic feminine given name, also popular in Bulgaria and Slovenia during the period of Soviet influence. Galina is the standard transliteration fr ...
, contributed an introduction to the second Russian edition of Volkov's ''Shostakovich and Stalin'' in 2006, which includes the following: "We, Shostakovich’s children, who watched his life pass before our eyes, express our profound gratitude to Solomon Volkov for his marvelous work, the naked truth of which will undoubtedly help our contemporaries and future generations better to see the difficult fate of our unforgettable father, and through it, better to understand his music."
Shostakovich's widow's later reaction to the book was one of skepticism: "Volkov saw Dmitrich three or maybe four times. . . . He was never an intimate friend of the family—he never had dinner with us here, for instance . . . . I don't see how he could have gathered enough material from Dmitrich for such a thick book."
[Whitney, Craig R., "Shostakovich Memoir a Shock to Kin" (New York Times, 13 November 1979)] The critics of ''Testimony'' claim that this further calls into question the book's authenticity. However, Volkov had a 15-year professional relationship with Dmitri Shostakovich. It started in 1960 when Volkov reviewed Shostakovich's
String Quartet No. 8, and Shostakovich wrote a preface for Volkov's book ''Molodyye Kompozitory Leningrada'' ("Young Composers of Leningrad") in 1971. In addition, Irina Shostakovich is now the only member of the Shostakovich family who denounces ''Testimony''. Son Maxim and daughter Galina (who lived longer with the composer than did his third wife) endorse it.
In 1984 during an interview in Brussels for the Flemish Classical Radio (KlaRa),
Yuri Ahronovich
Yuri Mikhaylovich Ahronovitch (Юрий Михайлович Аронович) (13 May 193231 October 2002) was a Soviet-born Israeli conductor.
Born in Leningrad, he studied music and the violin from the age of 4. In 1954 he graduated as cond ...
recalled that - while in Rome - he was the first who had seen Volkov's manuscript. He said : «Ich wörde sagen daß sehr fiel in diesem Buch steht daß könnte sein ...» But he added that for sure there is one mistake : Volkov writes that Shostakovich didn't respect
Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...
and vice-versa. This is not true («stimmt nicht»).
Although Volkov remains reluctant to respond to criticisms of himself and of ''Testimony'', on February 15, 1999, he appeared with
Vladimir Ashkenazy
Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy (russian: Влади́мир Дави́дович Ашкена́зи, ''Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazi''; born 6 July 1937) is an internationally recognized solo pianist, chamber music performer, and conductor. He ...
, Allan B. Ho, and Dmitry Feofanov at an open forum at the
Mannes College of Music
Mannes School of Music is a music conservatory in The New School, a private research university in New York City. In the fall of 2015, Mannes moved from its previous location on Manhattan's Upper West Side to join the rest of the New School ca ...
to answer questions about the memoirs. Unfortunately, none of his principal critics attended this session. Volkov also has provided input into the books by Ho and Feofanov.
Despite translation into 30 different languages, the Russian original has never been published, prompting speculation from the critics that Volkov is afraid to publish it in Russian because "Anybody who has heard Dmitri Dmitrievich's living voice even once would realize right away that it is a forgery." The copyrights of ''Testimony'', however, belong to Volkov's American publisher, and it is not up to Volkov to allow or to deny a Russian-language publication of ''Testimony''. Moreover, Maxim and Galina Shostakovich and many others have read copies of the original Russian typescript and believe the book to be genuine. In an interview with Feofanov in 1995, Galina stated:
"I am an admirer of Volkov. There is nothing false there n ''Testimony'' Definitely the style of speech is Shostakovich’s — not only the choice of words, but also the way they are put together."[Ho, Allan B. & Feofanov, Dmitry (eds.): ''Shostakovich Reconsidered'', p. 83. The quotation comes from a recorded conversation between Galina Shostakovich and Feofanov (October 15, 1995).]
Volkov continues to affirm that everything in ''Testimony'' came from Shostakovich's mouth, but some believe that it is a pastiche from other sources as well, which has caused them to take the book with a grain of salt. Significantly, recent Shostakovich research (such as the discovery of a fragment of the original version of the
Symphony No. 9) has tended to corroborate what is stated in ''Testimony'' rather than the other way around.
Other works
His other books include ''St. Petersburg: A Cultural History'' (1995), ''Shostakovich and Stalin: The Extraordinary Relationship Between the Great Composer and the Brutal Dictator'' (2004), ''The Magical Chorus: A History of Russian Culture from Tolstoy to Solzhenitsyn'' (2008), and ''Romanov Riches: Russian Writers and Artists Under the Tsars'' (2011). In Russia, Solomon Volkov is also well known due to his dialogues with
Joseph Brodsky, collected and published in 1998. He has also published volumes of memoirs with other major figures, including ''Balanchine's Tchaikovsky: Conversations with
Balanchine
George Balanchine (;
Various sources:
*
*
*
* born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze; ka, გიორგი მელიტონის ძე ბალანჩივაძე; January 22, 1904 (O. S. January 9) – April 30, 1983) was ...
on his Life, Ballet and Music'' (1985) and ''From Russia to the West: the Musical Memoirs and Reminiscences of
Nathan Milstein
Nathan Mironovich Milstein ( – December 21, 1992) was a Russian-born American virtuoso violinist.
Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and ...
'' (1990). In 2013, Volkov was the interviewer in a three-hour film "Dialogues with
Yevtushenko," which was shown during prime time on Russian TV. In 2014, Volkov followed the film about Yevtushenko with a film about
Vladimir Spivakov
Vladimir Teodorovich Spivakov (Russian: Влади́мир Теодо́рович Спивако́в; born 12 September 1944) is a Soviet and Russian conductor and violinist best known for his work with the Moscow Virtuosi chamber orchestra.
Spi ...
, a world-known Russian violinist and conductor, "Dialogues with Vladimir Spivakov." In addition to the film, Volkov wrote a book with the similar title.
References
Further reading
*Brown, Malcolm H., ''A Shostakovich Casebook'' (Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 2004).
*Ho, Allan B., "Volkov, Solomon", ''New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (London: Macmillan Publishers, 2001), Vol. 26, p. 885.
*Ho, Allan B. and Feofanov, Dmitry "The Shostakovich Wars" http://www.siue.edu/~aho/ShostakovichWars/SW.pdf
*MacDonald, Ian, ''The New Shostakovich'' (Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1990). .
*Volkov, Solomon, tr.
Antonina W. Bouis
Antonina W. Bouis is a German literary translator from Russian to English. She has been called "the best literary translator from Russian" by ''Publishers Weekly''.
Life
Born in West Germany, Bouis was educated in the United States. She has degre ...
, ''Testimony: The Memoirs of Dmitri Shostakovich'' (New York: Harper & Row, 1979). .
*Volkov, Solomon, tr. Bouis, Antonina W., ''St. Petersburg: A Cultural History'' (New York: The Free Press, 1995). .
*Volkov, Solomon, tr. Bouis, Antonina W., ''Shostakovich and Stalin: The Extraordinary Relationship Between the Great Composer and the Brutal Dictator'' (New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 2004). .
*Volkov, Solomon, tr. Bouis, Antonina W., ''The Magical Chorus: A History of Russian Culture from Tolstoy to Solzhenitsyn'' (New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 2008). .
{{DEFAULTSORT:Volkov, Solomon
Russian musicologists
1944 births
Living people
Saint Petersburg Conservatory alumni