Shostakovich Undressed

Last Thursday’s Shostakovich Undressed event was really quite a spectacle. It’s hard to imagine that anyone could combine Shostakovich’s turbulent chamber symphony in C minor with spoken word, electroacoustic responses and burlesque dancers…yet, somehow it worked. I don’t believe that such a thing has been attempted before, certainly not in Aberdeen. Of course, it wasn’t to everyone’s taste – I overheard one audience member remarking, “I’m not sure that it’s Shostakovich Undressed, but rather Shostakovich tortured!” You can’t win everyone over, I suppose.

I overheard that last comment following the performance of my own work, the video and sound of which can be found here:

During rehearsals, composer Clive Grace took the following pictures. The video projection of my own work is visible in the background: