Dmitri Shostakovich went to bed fully clothed for years, fearing arrest by security services during Stalin's purges in the late 1930s.
Composer Biography
Dmitri Shostakovich, unlike Kurt Weill, was trapped in Russia during Stalin's reign of terror, forced to balance state obligations with artistic ambition.
Critical Reception
Critics of Kurt Weill's Symphony No. 2 suggested he was better off as a theatrical composer, wrongly calling the work 'rather an assembly of songs than a real symphony'.
Composition History
Dmitri Shostakovich withdrew his Fourth Symphony from performance after veiled threats appeared in a Pravda article about his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Dmitri Shostakovich openly conformed to Soviet expectations to privately compose music true to his artistic aims, a balance between conformance and resistance.
Notable Performances
The official premiere of Kurt Weill's Symphony No. 2 was in 1934 in Amsterdam, performed by the Concertgebouw Orchestra and conductor Bruno Walter.
Historical Context
Kurt Weill, a composer of cabaret songs and musicals, fled Germany in March 1933 after his music was declared 'degenerate' by the Nazis.
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Bernstein: Symphony No. 2 "The Age of Anxiety" - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47 (Live)
Stravinsky: Symphonies
Stravinsky: Symphony in 3 Movements / Symphony in C / Symphony of Psalms
