Testimony (book)

Testimony (ISBN 0879100214) was published in October 1979 by the Russian musicologist Solomon Volkov. He claimed that it was the memoirs of the composer Dmitri Shostakovich. From its publication, its portrayal of the composer and his views was controversial: the Shostakovich of the book was sometimes critical of fellow composers, and most notably was strongly anti-Soviet in his views. The book also contained comments on his own music, indicating that it was intended as veiled criticism of the Soviet authorities and support for the dissident movement. The authenticity of the book is still disputed.

Contents

1 Volkov’s claim 2 Recycled material 3 Shostakovich and Volkov 4 Friends’ attitudes 5 Significance of the debate 6 Further reading:

Volkov’s claim

Volkov said that Shostakovich dictated the material in the book at a series of meetings with him between 1971 and 1974. Volkov took notes at each meeting, transcribed and edited the material, and presented it to the composer at their next meeting. Shostakovich then signed the first page of each chapter as a sign of approval.

Recycled material

The strongest criticism of the book was raised by Laurel Fay in 1980. She found that passages at the beginning of eight of the chapters duplicate almost exactly material from articles published as Shostakovich’s between 1932 and 1974. Critics of the book therefore claim that Volkov persuaded Shostakovich to sign each page containing the composer’s own material, before attaching to it fabricated material of Volkov’s own.

Volkov himself has never personally responded to this criticism, but supporters of the book’s authenticity have two arguments. Firstly, they provide evidence that Shostakovich had a photographic memory, which allowed him to recite long passages verbatim. Secondly, they note that not all the pages which Shostakovich signed are of recycled material. In particular, he signed the first page of the book, which contains unrecycled and controversial material.

Shostakovich and Volkov

A second argument against the book is that Volkov did not meet Shostakovich often enough to have received the material. Shostakovich’s widow, Irina, has stated that Volkov met him only three or four times. His ill-health at the time meant that she rarely left him, so that she would have known about any other meetings.

However, some other witnesses support Volkov’s version. In particular, the composer’s friend Flora Litvinova recalls him saying “We now meet constantly, and I tell him everything I remember about my works and myself. He writes it down, and at a subsequent meeting I look it over.”

Friends’ attitudes

Each side of the debate has amassed statements opposing or supporting the book’s authenticity. In 1979, a letter condemning the book was signed by six of the composer’s acquaintances: Veniamin Basner, Kara Karayev, Yury Levitin, Karen Khachaturian, Boris Tishchenko and Moisey Weinberg. The book was also criticised by the composer’s son, Maxim. Irina continues to reject the book.

Supporters of the book discount the statements of those who were still in the USSR at the time as extorted or fabricated. They point to endorsements of the book by emigres and after the fall of the USSR, including Maxim and Galina Shostakovich, Mstislav Rostropovich, Galina Vishnevskaya and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Significance of the debate

There is no necessary connection between accepting Testimony's provenance and accepting that Shostakovich was a dissident, or vice versa. The spectrum of opinion on these issues includes some who believe that Volkov may have faked Testimony, but that it accurately reflects Shostakovich's views (e.g. Elizabeth Wilson). They point to the fact that Volkov is known to have met with Shostakovich, and that he could have obtained further accurate information from other of the composer's acquaintances. Others (e.g. Richard Taruskin) have suggested that the book does reflect what Shostakovich told Volkov, but that it was Shostakovich's attempt to reinvent himself as a dissident to protect his image after his death.

Further reading:

• Fay, Laurel; Shostakovich versus Volkov: Whose Testimony?; The Russian Review, vol. 39 no. 4 October 1980 p. 484.

• Ho, Alland and Feofanov, Dmitry; Shostakovich Reconsidered; Toccata Press 1998. ISBN 0907689566 .

• Litvinova, Flora; Remembering Shostakovich in Znamya (The Banner), December 1996.

• Volkov, Solomon; Shostakovich and Stalin: The Extraordinary Relationship Between the Great Composer and the Brutal Dictator; Knopf 2004. ISBN 0375410821