“If they cut off both hands, I will compose music anyway holding the pen in my teeth.”

— Dmitri Shostakovich

Said to Isaac Glikman, 1936; cited from Laurel Fay Shostakovich: A Life (2000) p. 92.

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update May 21, 2025. History

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Dmitri Shostakovich 32

Russian composer and pianist 1906–1975

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“If they cut off both hands, I will compose music anyway holding the pen in my teeth.”

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