Shostakovich/Auerbach 24 PRELUDES for violoncello and piano (after Shostakovich Op. 34)

Shostakovich / Auerbach · after Shostakovich Op. 34

Shostakovich / Auerbach 24 Preludes

for Violoncello and Piano

Lera Auerbach’s arrangement of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Op. 34 for violoncello and piano: a complete twenty-four-prelude cycle translated from the keyboard into a charged duo language of line, resonance, and dramatic color.

Original / Arrangement 1933 / 2008
Duration 31′
Scoring Violoncello
Piano
Publisher VAAP
via Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski
Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski Purchase Score Work Catalogue PDF Abbreviations PDF

Commission

Co-commissioned by Norddeutscher Rundfunk Hamburg and the New Orleans Friends of Music. With Drs. Emel and Ranney Mize and Maestro Klauspeter Seibel.

First Performance

17 July 2008. Reinbek · Alisa Weilerstein, violoncello · Lera Auerbach, piano.

Source

After Dmitri Shostakovich’s Twenty-Four Preludes, Op. 34. Auerbach’s arrangement preserves the complete cycle while reimagining its pressure through the cello-piano medium.

Preludes

  • 1

    C major

    Moderato

  • 2

    A minor

    Allegretto

  • 3

    G major

    Andante

  • 4

    E minor

    Moderato

  • 5

    D major

    Allegro vivace

  • 6

    B minor

    Allegretto

  • 7

    A major

    Andante

  • 8

    F-sharp minor

    Allegretto

  • 9

    E major

    Presto

  • 10

    C-sharp minor

    Moderato non troppo

  • 11

    B major

    Allegretto

  • 12

    G-sharp minor

    Allegro non troppo

  • 13

    F-sharp major

    Moderato

  • 14

    E-flat minor

    Adagio

  • 15

    D-flat major

    Allegretto

  • 16

    B-flat minor

    Andantino

  • 17

    A-flat major

    Largo

  • 18

    F minor

    Allegretto

  • 19

    E-flat major

    Andantino

  • 20

    C minor

    Allegretto furioso

  • 21

    B-flat major

    Allegretto poco moderato

  • 22

    G minor

    Adagio

  • 23

    F major

    Moderato

  • 24

    D minor

    Allegretto

Work Information

Full Title
24 Preludes: Arrangement for Violoncello and Piano after Op. 34
Composer / Arranger
Dmitri Shostakovich / arranged by Lera Auerbach.
Original / Arrangement
1933 / 2008
Duration
31′
Form
Complete cycle of 24 preludes.
Instrumentation
vc—pft.
Abbreviations PDF
Expanded Forces
Violoncello and piano.
Commission
Co-commissioned by Norddeutscher Rundfunk Hamburg and the New Orleans Friends of Music, Drs. Emel and Ranney Mize and Maestro Klauspeter Seibel.
First Performance
17 July 2008 — Reinbek; Alisa Weilerstein, violoncello / Lera Auerbach, piano.
Publisher
Published by VAAP. Available through Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski .
Territory
UK, British Commonwealth excluding Canada, Republic of Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, Israel.
Availability
For sale through Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski.

The Work

Shostakovich’s Op. 34 belongs to the twentieth century’s great prelude cycles: twenty-four short works traversing the full tonal spectrum. Auerbach’s arrangement brings the complete cycle into the violoncello-and-piano medium, preserving the sequence while allowing the cello to absorb and re-speak Shostakovich’s sharply drawn characters.

The result is not a transcription in the decorative sense. The piano remains a structural and harmonic force, while the violoncello becomes a second nervous system: singing, biting, lamenting, driving, and darkening the original keyboard miniatures into chamber drama.

  • Source Shostakovich Op. 34.
  • Arrangement Lera Auerbach, 2008.
  • Forces Violoncello and piano.

Context

Auerbach also arranged Shostakovich’s Op. 34 for viola and piano in 2010, and earlier made a five-prelude violin-and-piano selection in 2000, conceived together with Dmitri Tsyganov’s existing arrangement of nineteen preludes to complete the violin-and-piano cycle.

The violoncello-and-piano version was premiered in Reinbek by Alisa Weilerstein and Lera Auerbach on 17 July 2008, following co-commissioning by Norddeutscher Rundfunk Hamburg and the New Orleans Friends of Music, with Drs. Emel and Ranney Mize and Maestro Klauspeter Seibel.

Online Materials

Public links related to Shostakovich/Auerbach 24 Preludes for Violoncello and Piano. Use the filters to view recordings, score pages, and reference materials.

  • Audio

    Educational listening access to all 24 supplied audio files on this page.

    leraauerbach.com · audio
  • Publisher
    Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski

    Official publisher page for the violoncello-and-piano arrangement after Shostakovich Op. 34.

    Boosey & Hawkes
  • Score
    Purchase Score

    Official Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski sale page.

    Boosey & Hawkes
  • Catalogue
    Auerbach Work Catalogue

    Official Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski catalogue entry with commission, premiere, and score reference.

    Boosey & Hawkes PDF
  • Recording
    Lera Auerbach Discography

    Discography reference including cello-and-piano recordings.

    leraauerbach.com
  • Materials
    Abbreviations PDF

    Boosey & Hawkes standard abbreviation reference.

    Boosey & Hawkes
Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski logo

Publisher and Materials

Published by VAAP; available through Boosey & Hawkes / Sikorski. The score is available for sale through the official publisher purchase page.

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