Shostakovich, Ogonek and Bernstein with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Jennifer Koh
Nelsons and BSO make Shostakovich shine
“Sometimes obscure symphonies are obscure for no discernible good reason, but it’s not too hard to guess why this symphony never made it into the core canon on this side of the Iron Curtain. Composed in 1929 when Shostakovich was in his early 20s, on the heels of the Soviet Union’s relentlessly utopian first decade, it’s still recognizably Shostakovich, but it’s museum-piece Shostakovich—on the surface, the musical manifestation of a faded propaganda poster. Yet Nelsons and the orchestra made its colors shine on Thursday”
The Boston Globe