As do all great artists Shostakovich creates in his art a personal language of universal appeal. In Shostakovich Symphonies and Concertos acclaimed author David Hurwitz describes the musical elements of that language: what it sounds like how it works expressively as opposed to providing a mere technical analysis. In this first book of its kind Hurwitz closely examines fifteen Shostakovich symphonies and six concertos in chronological order offering a wonderfully descriptive guided tour of the music as it unfolds in real time revealing its genius and how it fits in the tradition of Western classical music. The accompanying full-length BIS records CD contains afine performance of Shostakovich's popular Fifth Symphony which illustrates the various elements of the composer's individual style.