The Salzburg Festival, founded in 1920, is a major European cultural event that brings together artists and music lovers from around the world annually.
Critical Reception
At the 1961 Salzburg Festival, the director Herbert von Karajan reportedly said of Shostakovich's Eighth String Quartet, 'If I had been a composer, that is how I'd have wanted to compose'.
Performer Biography
The Borodin Quartet achieved a top position in Soviet music life due to their commitment to 20th-century music, including first performances of Russian composers and works by Alban Berg and Anton Webern in the Soviet Union.
Composer Biography
The Borodin Quartet had a particularly close friendship with Dmitri Shostakovich, who often performed as a pianist with them, and with whose string quartets they were always especially associated.
Performer Biography
The Borodin Quartet, formed in 1955, was composed of four professors from the Moscow State Academy, including Rostislav Dubinsky (first violin) and Jaroslav Alexandrov (second violin), a pupil of David Oistrakh.
Recording & Production
The Salzburg Festival began opening its archives in 1992 to make acoustically documented live performances available to music lovers worldwide after extensive technical restoration.
Notable Performances
The Borodin Quartet's Salzburg Festival debut in 1961, which included Shostakovich's Eighth String Quartet, marked the beginning of their international career.
