SHOSTAKOVICH, Dmitri
b St Petersburg, 25 September 1906
d Moscow, 9 August 1975, aged sixty-eight
His parents were both musical and intellectual. His mother taught him piano from the age of nine; he entered the St Petersburg Conservatory in 1916 and became an outstanding pianist. His compositions received good reception from audiences, but from 1927 they were criticised by the Soviet authorities as not being sufficiently idealistic. Pravda bitterly attacked his opera Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District in 1936, and as one result he withdrew his Fourth Symphony, written in that year; it was not performed until 1961. However, with his Fifth Symphony he returned to the forefront of Soviet music. He taught at the Moscow Conservatory from 1942; but in 1948 he again displeased the authorities with so-called non-Soviet works. From then on he wrote on two levels; a private one, and one acceptable to Soviet ideology. He received the Stalin Prize and the Lenin Prize, travelled abroad a good deal, and was given an honorary doctorate by Oxford University. In the 1960s his health began to give serious cause for anxiety. Heart trouble was diagnosed, but nevertheless he continued writing until the end.
1919 (13)
Scherzo in F sharp minor for orchestra
Eight Preludes for piano
1920-1 (14-15)
Five Preludes for piano
1921-2 (15-16)
Theme with Variations, in B major for orchestra
1922 (16)
Two Fables of Krilov, for mezzo-soprano and orchestra
Three Fantastic Dances, for piano
Suite in F# minor for two pianos
1923 (17)
Piano Trio No 1
1924 (18)
Symphony No 1 in F minor (1924-5)
Scherzo in Eb for orchestra
Prelude and Scherzo for string octet (double string quartet) or string orchestra (1924-5)
1926 (20)
Piano Sonata No 1
1927 (21)
The Nose, opera (1927-8)
The Age of Gold, ballet (1927-30)
Symphony No 2 in B major, October, with chorus
Aphorisms, ten pieces for piano
1928 (22)
New Babylon, for orchestra (film music)
Six Romances on Words by Japanese poets, for tenor and orchestra (1928-32)
1929 (23)
Symphony No 3 in Eb major, The First of May, with chorus
1930 (24)
The Bolt, choreographic spectacle (1930-1)
Alone, film music (1930-1)
Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, opera (1930-2)
1931-2 (25-6)
Hamlet, incidental music
1932 (26)
From Karl Marx to Our Own Days, symphonic poem for solo voices, chorus and orchestra
Encounter, film music
Twenty-four Preludes for piano (1932-3)
1933 (27)
Piano Concerto No 1 in C minor, for piano, string orchestra and trumpet
The Human Comedy, incidental music (1933-4)
1934 (28)
Bright Stream, comedy ballet (1934-5)
Suite for jazz orchestra, No 1
Cello Sonata in D minor
Girl Companions, film music (1934-5)
Love and Hate, film music
Maxim's Youth (The Bolshevik), film music (1934 5)
1935 (29)
Symphony No 4 in C minor (1935-6)
Five Fragments for small orchestra
1936 (30)
Salute to Spain, incidental music
Four Romances on Verses of Pushkin, for bass and piano
Maxim's Return, film music
Volochayevka Days, film music
1937 (31)
Symphony No 5 in D minor
1938 (32)
Suite for jazz orchestra, No 2
String Quartet No 1 in C major
Friends, film music
The Great Citizen, film music
Man at Arms, film music
Vyborg District, film music
1939 (33)
Symphony No 6 in B minor
The Great Citizen, Part II, film music
1940 (34)
Piano Quintet in G minor
Three Pieces for solo violin
King Lear, incidental music
1941 (35)
Symphony No 7 in C major, Leningrad
The Gamblers, opera
1942 (36)
Native Leningrad, suite included in the theatre show Motherland
Piano Sonata No 2
Six Romances on Verses of English poets, for bass and piano
1943 (37)
Symphony No 8 in C minor
1944 (38)
Russian River, suite
String Quartet No 2 in A major
Piano Trio No 2
Children's Notebook, six pieces for piano
Eight English and American Folk Songs, for low voice and orchestra
Zoya, film music
1945 (39)
Symphony No 9 in Eb major
Two Songs
Simple Folk, film music
1946 (40)
String Quartet No 3 in F major
1947 (41)
Violin Concerto No 1 (1947-8)
Poem of the Motherland, cantata
Pirogov, film music
Young Guards, film music
1948 (42)
From Jewish Folk Poetry, song cycle for soprano, contralto, tenor and piano
Meeting on the Elbe, film music
Michurin, film music
1949 (43)
Ballet Suite No 1 for orchestra
String Quartet No 4 in D major
The Song of the Forests, oratorio
The Fall of Berlin, film score
1950 (44)
Twenty-four Preludes and Fugues for piano (1950-1)
Two Romances on Verses by Mikhail Lermontov, for male voice and piano
Byelinski, film music
1951 (45)
Ballet Suite No 2 for orchestra
Ten Poems on Texts by Revolutionary poets, for chorus a cappella
The Memorable Year 1919, film music
1952 (46)
Ballet Suite No 3 for orchestra
String Quartet No 5 in B flat major
Four Monologues on Verses of Pushkin, for bass and piano
The Sun Shines over Our Motherland, cantata
1953 (47)
Symphony No 10 in E minor
Ballet suite No 4 for orchestra
Concertino for two pianos
1954 (48)
Festival Overture, for orchestra
Five Romances (Songs of our Days), for bass and piano
1955 (49)
The Gadfly, film music
1956 (50)
Katerina Ismailova, opera (new version of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District)
String Quartet No 6 in G major
Spanish Songs, for soprano and piano
The First Echelon, film music
1957 (51)
Piano Concerto No 2 in F major
Symphony No. 11 in G minor, The Year 1905
1958 (52)
Moscow, Cheremushki, musical comedy
1959 (53)
Cello Concerto No 1 in Eb major
1960 (54)
Novorossiysk Chimes (The Fire of Eternal Glory), for orchestra
String Quartet No. 7 in F# minor
String Quartet No 8 in C minor
Satires (Pictures of the Past), for soprano and piano
Five Days - Five Nights, film music
1961 (55)
Symphony No 12 in D minor, 1917
1962 (56)
Symphony No. 13 in Bb minor, Babi-Yar, for bass solo, bass choir and orchestra
1963 (57)
Overture on Russian and Kirghiz Folk Themes for orchestra
Hamlet, film music
1964 (58)
String Quartet No 9 in Eb major
String Quartet No 10 in Ab major
The Execution of Stepan Razin, cantata
1965 (59)
Five Romances on Texts from 'Krokodil' magazine, for bass and piano
1966 (60)
Cello Concerto No 2 in G major
String Quartet No. 11 in F minor
Preface to the Complete Collection of my Works, and Brief Reflections apropos this Preface, for bass and grand piano
1967 (61)
Violin Concerto No 2 in C# minor
Funeral-Triumphal Prelude, for orchestra
October, symphonic poem
Spring, Spring, for bass and grand piano
Sofyu Perovoskaya, film music
Seven Romances on Poems of Alexander Blok, for soprano and piano trio
1968 (62)
String Quartet No 12 in Db major
Sonata for violin and grand piano
1969 (63)
Symphony No. 14, for soprano, bass, string orchestra and percussion
1970 (64)
March of the Soviet Militia, for wind orchestra
String Quartet No 13 in Bb minor
Loyalty, eight ballads for male chorus
King Lear, film music
1971 (65)
Symphony No. 15 in A major
1972-3 (66-7)
String Quartet No 14 in F# major
1973 (67)
Six Poems of Marina Tsvetaeva, suite for contralto and piano
1974 (68)
String Quartet No 15 in Eb minor
Suite on Verses of Michelangelo Buonarroti, for bass and piano
Four Verses of Capitan Lebiadkin, for bass and piano
1975 (69)
Sonata for viola and grand piano
The Dreamers, ballet (largely drawn from The Age of Gold and The Bolt, with some new material)
It is believed that Shostakovich completed two movements of a Symphony No 16 just before his death.