Dmitri Shostakovich

Shostakovich: where to start with his music

In the eye of Russia’s revolutionary storm, he wrote some of the most powerful – and cryptic – music of the 20th century. Whether he is judged a Soviet lackey or heroic dissident, the wealth of his musical legacy is beyond doubt

Martin Kettle

23, Sep, 2020 @11:00 AM

‘Rockers and spies’ – how the CIA used culture to shred the iron curtain

Musicians and artists were all enlisted to assert US power in the cold war. A new podcast explores the part the agency played

Ed Vulliamy

03, May, 2020 @8:00 AM

Rebels with a cause: the friendship of Britten and Shostakovich

The two composers were separated by the Iron Curtain and language but united by their art and their deep admiration for each others’ music. A new bi-cultural orchestra inspired by their friendship pays tribute to their common cause

Elizabeth Wilson

11, Sep, 2019 @9:11 AM

Ballet legend Alexei Ratmansky: how Shostakovich shook me up

As he takes his celebrated Shostakovich Trilogy to London, the choreographer explains how he was inspired by the Russian composer’s political risks

Judith Mackrell

07, May, 2019 @6:45 PM

Belcea Quartet review – fierce and fearsome Shostakovich

Piotr Anderszewski joined the quartet for a night of chamber music delivered with an almost superreal level of definition

Andrew Clements

01, May, 2019 @10:49 AM

Birmingham Opera Company: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk review – a blast of pure energy

Tower Ballroom, Birmingham
Shostakovich’s bleak and brilliant satire fits this unconventional opera company perfectly

Erica Jeal

12, Mar, 2019 @12:39 PM

Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos 4 and 11 review – brittleness and brilliance

The Boston SO under Andris Nelsons don’t quite bring out the character of these symphonies, but the playing is sometimes stellar

Andrew Clements

02, Aug, 2018 @2:00 PM

Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk review – searing and unsparing Shostakovich

Eva-Maria Westbroek’s performance in this vivid revival keeps you rooting for her to the very end

Erica Jeal

16, Apr, 2018 @2:08 PM

Pavel Filonov’s Shostakovich’s First Symphony: art at its most musical

This piece from 1935 reflects the artist’s theory of ‘analytical realism’, in which minutely realised, obsessively detailed individual parts form a whole

Skye Sherwin

29, Dec, 2017 @10:00 AM

The Guardian view on opera: still powerful, still relevant | Editorial

Editorial: Opera, an artform that exemplifies Europe’s cultural interconnectedness, should not be written off as simply elitist

Editorial

27, Sep, 2017 @6:47 PM

Shostakovich/Gubaidulina: Violin Concertos CD review – dark works played with polished defiance

Kate Molleson

11, May, 2017 @3:00 PM

Shostakovich: Preludes and Fugues CD review – Donohoe's directness brings dignity and power