Noise of time

The Resource Noise of time
Label
Noise of time
Statement of responsibility
Julian Barnes
Creator
Contributor
Subject
Genre
Language
eng
Summary
A compact masterpiece dedicated to the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich: Julian Barnes's first novel since his best-selling, Man Booker Prize-winning The Sense of an Ending. In 1936, Shostakovich, just thirty, fears for his livelihood and his life. Stalin, hitherto a distant figure, has taken a sudden interest in his work and denounced his latest opera. Now, certain he will be exiled to Siberia (or, more likely, executed on the spot), Shostakovich reflects on his predicament, his personal history, his parents, various women and wives, his children-and all who are still alive themselves hang in the balance of his fate. And though a stroke of luck prevents him from becoming yet another casualty of the Great Terror, for decades to come he will be held fast under the thumb of despotism: made to represent Soviet values at a cultural conference in New York City, forced into joining the Party and compelled, constantly, to weigh appeasing those in power against the integrity of his music. Barnes elegantly guides us through the trajectory of Shostakovich's career, at the same time illuminating the tumultuous evolution of the Soviet Union. The result is both a stunning portrait of a relentlessly fascinating man and a brilliant exploration of the meaning of art and its place in society
Accompanying matter
technical information on music
Cataloging source
Midwest
Form of composition
not applicable
Format of music
not applicable
Literary text for sound recordings
other
PerformerNote
Read by Daniel Philpott
Target audience
adult
Transposition and arrangement
not applicable

Context

Context of Noise of time

Work of

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