““Young Shostakovich-Mitya-was nine, relatively old, when he began piano lessons. His first instructor was his mother, who, when she saw his rapid progress, took him to a piano teacher. The following conversation was a favorite family story: "I've brought you a marvelous pupil!" "All mothers have marvelous children...." Within two years he played all the preludes and fugues in Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier. It was clear that he was exceptionally gifted.””
