DSCH

“Shostakovich’s quartet opens with a motif of four notes that echoes throughout the piece,… four notes that in the German music-notation system spell out the initials of his name, DSCH, Dmitri SCHostakovitch. A wild thought enters my mind: those are my own initials! In the Jewish tradition a new-born is given two names—a secular name that reflects the language of one’s country, as well as a Hebrew name…. The Hebrew name I had been given was Dvereh, a name I have never used nor thought about. Dvereh SCHapiro. DSCH.”