Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4 is his largest and most ambitious, featuring expanded woodwind, brass, and percussion sections, and using fugal and ostinato forms.
Recording & Production
This album features a live recording of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4 by the BBC Symphony Orchestra from a 1978 performance at the Royal Albert Hall.
Historical Context
Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4 was completed in 1936, but its premiere was cancelled, and the manuscript was hidden for 25 years due to political pressure.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Shostakovich's Symphony No. 11, 'The Year 1905', is a programmatic work based on folk song material related to the 1905 Revolution, often called the 'dress rehearsal' for the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution.
Performer Biography
Gennady Rozhdestvensky, the conductor, recorded all 15 of Shostakovich's symphonies with the USSR Ministry of Culture Orchestra and conducted them worldwide.
Notable Performances
Gennady Rozhdestvensky conducted the Western premiere of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4 at the Edinburgh Festival in 1962, a significant Cold War musical event.
Performer Biography
Gennady Rozhdestvensky, the conductor on this album, was one of a select few invited to perform at Dmitri Shostakovich's funeral in 1975.
You might also enjoy...
Dmitri Schostakowitsch: Symphonies Nos. 1 and 6 (Berlin Symphony, K. Sanderling)
