After giving in to massive pressure from state authorities in 1960 and finally becoming a member of the Communist Party, Shostakovich fell into a gloomy depression. His 8th String Quartet, composed in the same year, is interpreted as a deeply personal commentary on this. By contrast, his Symphony No.12, which was written around the same time and bears the subtitle ‘The Year 1917’, seems like a dutiful official statement with its October Revolution subject matter. Remarkable are the work’s ...