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{ "title": "Unpacking Shostakovich: A Deep Dive into His Life and Art", "summary": "This collection, 'A Shostakovich Casebook,' offers a multifaceted exploration of the iconic Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich, moving beyond simplistic narratives and controversies. Comprising 25 diverse pieces—essays, interviews, and reviews—many previously unavailable, it leverages post-Soviet archival access to provide a more nuanced understanding of Shostakovich's life and art.\n\nThe book critically examines the widely accepted autobiography 'Testimony,' presenting it as a potentially unreliable account that painted Shostakovich as a heroic dissident. The 'Casebook' offers a 'devastating critique' of 'Testimony,' questioning its authenticity and the scholarly methods used to promote it, warning against simply replacing one myth with another.\n\nAt