the firestorm of 1936. An adventurous composer, at the top of his Orphic game, brilliant, unpredictable, admired by everyone. For two years, Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District played to near-total acclaim. Then the Pravda article—“Muddle Instead of Music”—a rabid, all-out attack on Shostakovich and everything his music stood for. Problem was, the anonymous author turned out to be that culture fan and amateur music critic, Stalin.
