Chamber music: Schubert and Shostakovich

Shostakovich’s symphonies are milestones in the symphonic repertoire, all equally dramatic with that same rebellious, ironic undertone. His last symphony, Symphony No. 15, has a more introspective quality. Many of his contemporaries likened it to a meditation on life: the cheerful first movement represents the innocence of childhood, whereas the last, unsettling darker movement refers to adulthood and perhaps the end of life. In the piano trio fo...