Shostakovich

Can you draw a line through the brutal Siege of Leningrad, to the war in Ukraine, to a recent special performance of Shostakovich in South Dakota?

"Suite for Variety Orchestra" serves as "a reminder to feel joy and mischief during a time when maybe we feel guilty for doing so," classical music opinionator Fran Hoepfner says.

Classical music expert Fran Hoepfner discusses the dark time in Soviet history, which informs Dmitri Shostakovich's "Festive Overture."

BBC music broadcaster Stephen Johnson's remarkably diverse aesthetic and personal sensitivity are on full display in his new book on the Russian composer's music — and his own personal struggles.

About eight minutes into the first movement of Dmitri Shostakovich’s first violin concerto, with soloist Nicola Benedetti, the orchestra trades melodies…

Contrasting symphonies by the brilliant but troubled Dmitri Shostakovich get deluxe treatments from conductor Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony.

Author M. T. Anderson has now written the book "Symphony for the City of the Dead" on Russian composer Shostakovich.

After he was publicly denounced, Shostakovich rebounded with the compelling and calculated Symphony No. 5. The music supplied a soundtrack for the Soviet people and satisfied the apparatchiks.

A year into the siege of Leningrad, a haggard group of musicians defiantly — and improbably — performed Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 7, which was dedicated to the suffering city.