Shostakovich Festival - Young Belgian Strings

The Young Belgian Strings bring together 21 talented young people drawn from different string instrument classes from all the conservatories and music colleges of Belgium. The purpose of the string orchestra is to give those musicians the opportunity to meet each other, exchange experiences, improve their knowledge, perform on the most prestigious international stages and prepare themselves for careers in the best orchestras in the world.

In this concert, the Young Belgian Strings first perform Shostakovich’s Chamber Symphony. This work is actually an arrangement of his String Quartet No. 8, orchestrated for string orchestra by the Russian conductor Rudolf Barshai. The String Quartet No. 8 occupies an unusual place in the oeuvre of Shostakovich: it was created in a very difficult period for the composer and is one of his most autobiographical works. The composition begins with Shostakovich’s musical signature (the notes DSCH) and abounds with references to his other compositions. There are also obvious parallels with both Strauss’ Metamorphosen and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 – works which, like Shostakovich’s string quartet, were written at the end of the composer’s life, reflecting on incredible suffering.

Next, the promising young talent Sonoko Miriam Welde solos in an arrangement of Shostakovich’s Sonata for Violin and Piano, Opus 134. Shostakovich composed this piece in 1968 for the 60th birthday of David Oistrakh, the violinist who played a crucial role in the development of both his First and Second Violin Concertos. Michael Zinman has arranged this sonata for solo violin, string orchestra and percussion.


The Young Belgian Strings are under the High Patronage of Her Majesty the Queen.
 

Young Belgian Strings
Dirk Van De Moortel, conductor
Sonoko Miriam Welde, violin
Nico Schoeters, percussion