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Sunday, April 29, 2007

Mstislav Rostropovich



Mstislav Rostropovich, the celebrated and renowned cellist and conductor, died on April 27, 2007, aged 80.

The obituaries of his life and career have been published all over the world: such was his talent, and accomplishment as a musician and a force for moral good.

One passage in the obituary in the Guardian caught my eye:


"Rostropovich's birth - in Baku, capital of Azerbaijan, then part of the Soviet Union - was not wanted, but even in the womb he asserted himself.

"My mother understood too late that she was pregnant. She cried all over the house. My parents decided she would have to be aborted because she already had a little child. It was a joint decision. So my mother started to fight against me, but as you see, I won this war.""

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