Coming Soon,
Shostakovich from Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra
On Friday, the Boston Symphony Orchestra announced that they are set to embark on a major recording project with their new conductor Andris Nelsons on Deutsche Grammophon, entitled Shostakovich Under Stalin's Shadow and consisting of recordings of Shostakovich's Symphonies Nos. 5-10 (plus several other major symphonic works, including incidental music from King Lear and Hamlet), for release in three instalments over the next two years.
The first recording (set down over the past few days from live concerts at Boston's Symphony Hall) will feature the mammoth Tenth Symphony and the Passacaglia from the controversial 1932 opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk; reviews of the live performances over the weekend praised 'the players’ sheer athletic skill and musical panache' (Boston Classical Review) and Nelsons' 'viscerally articulate, richly characterized, and thoughtfully detailed readings' (Boston Globe).
Other Shostakovich recordings from Andris Nelsons
Nelsons's recording of the mighty Leningrad Symphony with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was praised for its 'tremendous energy and heroic determination' (BBC Music Magazine), whilst Gramophone found him to be 'excellent at judging the music's momentum'.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Arabella Steinbacher is the soloist in both concertos, with Nelsons conducting the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra; recorded in 2006 (the centenary of the composer's birth), FonoForum deemed it 'one of the most substantial contributions to the Shostakovich year'.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
The Eighth Symphony was the centrepiece of Nelsons's acclaimed Lucerne programme in 2011; Gramophone applauded him for 'bringing a human warmth to a structure that often derives its impact from implacable (not to say dour) relentlessness'. Programme also includes music by Wagner and Strauss.
Available Format: DVD Video
Katherine Cooper - Head of Editorial
