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London

Collaboration, innovation and defiance: Chineke! at the BBC Proms

By Eleanor Knight, 05 September 2025

Jonathon Heyward steps in to conduct Chineke! in two UK premieres and Shostakovich's rip-roaring Tenth Symphony.

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London

08 Sep 2025

Collaboration, innovation and defiance: Chineke! at the BBC Proms

By Eleanor Knight

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Edinburgh

LSO launches Edinburgh residency with larger-than-life Beethoven and Shostakovich

By Simon Thompson, 12 August 2025

Sir Antonio Pappano's skills as a communicator are clear, whether he's speaking or conducting, but it's the depth of the LSO's sound that impresses most as it launches its EIF residency.

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Edinburgh

12 Aug 2025

LSO launches Edinburgh International Festival residency

By Simon Thompson

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London

Oh To Believe in Another World: Shostakovich and Stalin on film at the Multitudes festival

By Mark Pullinger, 24 April 2025

William Kentridge's film, a patchwork collage depicting Shostakovich's complicated relationship with Stalin, is played as film score to his Tenth Symphony at the Southbank's genre-crossing Multitudes festival.

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London

25 Apr 2025

Oh To Believe in Another World: Shostakovich and Stalin on film

By Mark Pullinger

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Aix-en-Provence

Thrills without chills in Aix-en-Provence

By Charlotte Gardner, 24 April 2025

Beatrice Rana, Mikko Franck and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France bring a thrilling Tchaikovsky First Piano Concerto to the Festival de Pâques, even if their Shostakovich 10 is more of a beauty than a bully.

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Aix-en-Provence

26 Apr 2025

Thrills without chills in Aix-en-Provence

By Charlotte Gardner

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London

Percussive Prokofiev and titanic Shostakovich from Igor Levit and Lukas Sternath

By Mark Pullinger, 04 April 2025

Igor Levit champions his young mentee Lukas Sternath in a joint Wigmore Hall recital culminating in Shostakovich's own transcription of his Tenth Symphony.

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London

05 Apr 2025

Percussive Prokofiev and titanic Shostakovich from Levit and Sternath

By Mark Pullinger

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London

High voltage Shostakovich 10 from Elim Chan and the BBCSO

By Mark Pullinger, 28 February 2025

In the 50th anniversary year of Shostakovich's death, you'll be hard pushed to hear a more thrilling rendition of the Tenth Symphony.

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London

01 Mar 2025

High voltage Shostakovich 10 from Elim Chan and the BBCSO

By Mark Pullinger

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New York City

A toy-box of tyranny: Shostakovich, Stalin and Kentridge collide in harrowing brilliance

By Kurt Gottschalk, 07 December 2024

Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony is a massive and aptly complicated work to which William Kentridge’s film adds contextual layers of stop-motion animation and vintage footage in a surreal nightmare of tyranny.

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New York City

09 Dec 2024

A toy-box of tyranny: Shostakovich, Stalin and Kentridge collide

By Kurt Gottschalk

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Los Angeles

“Iron Man” Kozhukhin dominates in Prokofiev

By Néstor Castiglione, 06 August 2024

Denis Kozhukhin crushes Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto, but guest conductor Ryan Bancroft is overwhelmed in Shostakovich 10.

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Los Angeles

06 Aug 2024

“Iron Man” Kozhukhin dominates in Prokofiev

By Néstor Castiglione

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Dublin

Jaime Martín and the NSO deliver a bold, exciting Shostakovich 10 in Dublin

By Andrew Larkin, 12 April 2024

Pablo Ferrández charms in Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations while conductor Jaime Martín offers a compelling, rhythmically driven version of Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony.

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Dublin

14 Apr 2024

Martín and the NSO deliver a bold, exciting Shostakovich 10 in Dublin

By Andrew Larkin

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Liverpool

Band of brothers and sisters: Sir Simon Rattle leads a jubilant reunion concert in Liverpool

By Michelle Assay, 25 February 2024

Sir Simon Rattle, Tim Reynish and Clark Rundell take the baton in turn, to celebrate the past and present of Liverpool’s Youth Orchestras.

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Liverpool

27 Feb 2024

Sir Simon Rattle leads a jubilant reunion concert in Liverpool

By Michelle Assay

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London

Kantorow’s sensational Proms debut matched by a stirring Shostakovich 10

By Christopher Woodley, 15 August 2023

Alenandre Kantorow storms the Proms with an eloquent account of Beethoven's Fourth Piano Concerto. matched by a full-blooded Shostakovich 10 from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Vasily Petrenko.

*****

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London

16 Aug 2023

Kantorow’s sensational Proms debut, stirring Shostakovich

By Christopher Woodley

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Hong Kong

Hong Kong Philharmonic packs a punch with Tarmo Peltokoski at the helm

By Christopher Halls, 30 June 2023

Memorable Tchaikovsky from Leonidas Kavakos and the Hong Kong Philharmonic is flanked by strong performances of Sibelius and Shostakovich.

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Hong Kong

02 Jul 2023

Hong Kong Philharmonic packs a punch with Tarmo Peltokoski at the helm

By Christopher Halls

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Baltimore

Black composers take center-stage in Baltimore Symphony season finale

By Cameron Kelsall, 18 June 2023

Artistic advisor James Conlon presents a triptych of works by Adolphus Hailstork, Alvin Singleton and Joel Thompson next to an edgy, ironic reading of Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony.

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Baltimore

19 Jun 2023

Black composers take center-stage in Baltimore Symphony season finale

By Cameron Kelsall

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Liverpool

Mighty Shostakovich from Andris Poga and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

By Peter Connors, 01 December 2022

Andris Poga conducts the RLPO in a breathtaking Shostakovich 10, preceded by a rarity for brass and percussion and Glazunov's delightful Saxophone Concerto with Jess Gillam.

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Liverpool

02 Dec 2022

Mighty Shostakovich from Andris Poga and the RLPO

By Peter Connors

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Berlin

Drumming the Night Away: Grubinger and Gimeno at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden

By Elena Luporini, 07 November 2022

Austrian percussionist Martin Grubinger delivers a memorable performance at Berlin's Staatsoper with a programme featuring Peter Eötvös and Tan Dun, under the baton of Gustavo Gimeno.

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Berlin

09 Nov 2022

Drumming the Night Away at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden

By Elena Luporini

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London

Triumphant Shostakovich closes Montrealers' European tour

By Mark Pullinger, 28 October 2022

The Orchestre symphonique de Montréal conclude their first European tour for three decades with sardonic Shostakovich under new Music Director Rafael Payare.

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London

29 Oct 2022

Triumphant Shostakovich closes Montrealers' European tour

By Mark Pullinger

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Edinburgh

Philharmonia Orchestra commands Usher Hall as part of Edinburgh residency

By Simon Thompson, 07 August 2022

The main concert of their Edinburgh International Festival residency showed off conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali's fluid style and soloist Seong-Jin Cho's masterful musicianship.

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Edinburgh

07 Aug 2022

Philharmonia commands Usher Hall as part of Edinburgh residency

By Simon Thompson

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Hamburg

Two studies in the minor key from Kirill Petrenko and the Berliner Philharmoniker

By Alexander Hall, 20 November 2021

The chief conductor of the Berliner Philharmoniker challenges his audience with a pairing of disparate symphonies by Mendelssohn and Shostakovich. Not something you encounter every day.

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Hamburg

20 Nov 2021

Two studies in the minor key from Petrenko and the Berlin Phil

By Alexander Hall

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Washington

Young and Lamsma bring levity to National Symphony Orchestra

By Sydney Boyd, 20 November 2021

A dark trio of works focused around Benjamin Britten's Violin Concerto made for a compelling concert in Washington DC.

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Washington

21 Nov 2021

Young and Lamsma bring levity to National Symphony Orchestra

By Sydney Boyd

Singapore

Litton, Quint and the Singapore Symphony provide light at the end of the tunnel

By Chang Tou Liang, 05 March 2020

Smile, because there's light at the end of the tunnel, illuminated by Andrew Litton, Philippe Quint and the Singapore Symphony.

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Singapore

08 Mar 2020

Litton, Quint and the SSO provide light at the end of the tunnel

By Chang Tou Liang

Hong Kong

A compelling tale of two Tenths in Hong Kong

By Christopher Halls, 13 December 2019

The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra excels in the bleakest of times for Mahler and Shostakovich under chief conductor Jaap van Zweden.

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Hong Kong

15 Dec 2019

A compelling tale of two Tenths in Hong Kong

By Christopher Halls

London

Norwegian flair and Andsnes' formidable technique light up the Oslo Philharmonic's centenary tour

By David Karlin, 22 October 2019

Grieg's Piano Concerto is the highlight of this closing concert of the Oslo Phil's centenary tour, with Leif Ove Andsnes' exceptional technical skill helping to cast the work in a new and flattering light.

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London

23 Oct 2019

Formidable technique, Norwegian flair: Andsnes and the Oslo Phil

By David Karlin

Snape

Impassioned musicianship at Snape's “Britten and Russia” weekend

By Mark Valencia, 19 October 2019

Britten's Cello Symphony and a no-holds-barred account of Shostakovich’s mighty Tenth Symphony at Snape Maltings

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Snape

21 Oct 2019

Impassioned musicianship at Snape's “Britten and Russia” weekend

By Mark Valencia

Glasgow

Romantic Tchaikovsky and a chilling Shostakovich 10 from the Amicus Orchestra

By David Smythe, 13 October 2019

Amicus Orchestra shine magnificently in the romantic Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto no. 1 with Elena Fischer-Dieskau and a chilling Shostakovich Tenth Symphony conducted by Catherine Larsen-Maguire.

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Glasgow

15 Oct 2019

Romantic Tchaikovsky and a chilling Shostakovich 10

By David Smythe

London

Heights and depths: Ashkenazy and the Philharmonia in all-Russian evening

By Gus Mitchell, 28 April 2019

The venerable Russian maestro and Conductor Laureate led the Philharmonia in an all-Russian programme with sensitive charm, youthful fire, and emotional range, with outstanding soloist Esther Yoo.

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London

30 Apr 2019

Ashkenazy and the Philharmonia in all-Russian evening

By Gus Mitchell

Belfast

Rafael Payare opens his final Ulster Orchestra season

By Leighton Jones, 14 September 2018

Husband and wife join together with the Ulster Orchestra in Ulster Hall, at the beginning of a year-long féile pairing the music of two twentieth-century giants of symphonic repertoire.

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Belfast

15 Sep 2018

Rafael Payare opens his final Ulster Orchestra season

By Leighton Jones

London

Precision and abandon in the LSO's Shostakovich

By Young-Jin Hur, 24 June 2018

An in-form Noseda and Benedetti meant that their Shostakovich was never to be lukewarm, as they portrayed the Soviet composer with fire and drama..

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London

25 Jun 2018

Precision and abandon in the LSO's Shostakovich

By Young-Jin Hur

London

Totally committed Finzi and inspired Shostakovich from Sir Andrew Davis and the BBCSO

By Chris Garlick, 02 February 2018

Two works of personal victory, written at virtually the same point in history and against a backdrop of suffering, made up this very successful concert conducted by Sir Andrew Davis.

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London

03 Feb 2018

Totally committed Finzi and inspired Shostakovich

By Chris Garlick

Bucharest

A performance with two very different halves: Vladimir Ashkenazy at the helm of the Philharmonia Orchestra

By Edward Sava-Segal, 14 September 2017

His gestures might not be the most elegant, but Vladimir Askenazy has a deep understanding of the music he choses to conduct.

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Bucharest

18 Sep 2017

A performance with two very different halves

By Edward Sava-Segal

London

Prom 5: Brilliantly played 20th-century classics from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales

By Andrew Morris, 17 July 2017

Vivid playing thrills at the Proms, but fell short of engrossing storytelling.

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London

18 Jul 2017

Brilliantly played 20th-century classics at the Proms

By Andrew Morris

Akron

Taking Shostakovich on tour: the St Petersburg Philharmonic in Ohio

By Frank Kuznik, 01 March 2017

In the American heartland, a persuasive evening of musical diplomacy from the St Petersburg Philharmonic.

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Akron

02 Mar 2017

Taking Shostakovich on tour

By Frank Kuznik

Atlanta

Runnicles and Gerstein deliver searing Tchaikovsky in Atlanta

By William E Ford, 12 January 2017

Donald Runnicles has been principal guest conductor of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for about a decade. He has developed a reputation as someone who how can shake things up, in a good way, each time he visits.

Atlanta

14 Jan 2017

Runnicles and Gerstein deliver searing Tchaikovsky in Atlanta

By William E Ford

Chicago

David Afkham hits the right note in Chicago Symphony debut

By Sam Jacobson, 20 October 2016

David Afkham scored a successful CSO debut in Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony and Beethoven First Piano Concerto with Emanuel Ax.

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Chicago

25 Oct 2016

David Afkham hits the right note in Chicago

By Sam Jacobson

Tokyo

“Edge of your seat” Shostakovich 10 from Jonathan Nott and the Tokyo Symphony

By Nahoko Gotoh, 15 October 2016

The Tokyo Symphony gave the Japanese première of Shostakovich's Tenth in 1954, less than a year after its first performance in Leningrad. Jonathan Nott’s approach could scarcely have been more different.

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Tokyo

17 Oct 2016

“Edge of your seat” Shostakovich in Tokyo

By Nahoko Gotoh

Dublin

Sensational Shostakovich: Nesterowicz and NSO make a powerful combination in Dublin

By Andrew Larkin, 14 October 2016

Nesterowicz and the NSO deliver a stunning Shostakovich Symphony 10 while Vähälä captivates with the magical delights of Vasks' Distant Lights.

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Dublin

16 Oct 2016

Nesterowicz and NSO make a powerful combination

By Andrew Larkin

London

Prom 10: Frothy and fast-paced: Ten Pieces Secondary Prom roars to life

By Charlotte Gardner, 23 July 2016

Celebrating Youth, Music and Education in Roof-Raising Style: Ten Pieces Secondary comes to the BBC Proms

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London

23 Jul 2016

Prom 10: Frothy and fast-paced: Ten Pieces

By Charlotte Gardner

Zurich

Elgar and Shostakovich: nostalgia and gripping drama at the Tonhalle

By Sarah Batschelet, 25 February 2016

Under conductor Krzysztof Urbanski, Zurich’s fine Tonhalle Orchestra recently performed two major works that took their cues from the two great wars.

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Zurich

26 Feb 2016

Nostalgia and gripping drama at the Tonhalle

By Sarah Batschelet

Montreal

Musical monograms: Shostakovich's Tenth a highlight in Montréal

By Christina Volpini, 28 November 2015

With Mahler’s arrangement of Bach orchestral suites and Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, this concert showcased the many ways that composers have placed musical signatures on their work.

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Montreal

30 Nov 2015

Musical monograms: Shostakovich's Tenth a highlight in Montréal

By Christina Volpini

London

Prom 51: Wit, clarity and energy in Andris Nelsons’ inspirational direction

By David Truslove, 23 August 2015

A richly varied programme of Haydn, Barber and Shostakovich that mostly played to the strengths of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

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London

25 Aug 2015

Wit, clarity and energy in Andris Nelsons’ inspirational direction

By David Truslove

New York City

Batiashvili and Leleux rediscover Bach in Escaich's new Double Concerto

By Jacob Slattery, 11 April 2015

Ms Batiashvili performed her final concert as the New York Philharmonic’s Artist-in-Residence alongside her companion and oboe virtuoso François Leleux in works by two distinguished organist-composers.

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New York City

14 Apr 2015

Batiashvili and Leleux rediscover Bach in Escaich concerto

By Jacob Slattery

San Diego

Zukerman crafts a spectacular evening at San Diego Symphony

By Erica Miner, 28 March 2015

Zukerman, master of the violin, viola and baton, displayed his many creative capabilities with panache this weekend with the San Diego Symphony.

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San Diego

29 Mar 2015

Zukerman crafts a spectacular evening in San Diego

By Erica Miner

London

Yuri Temirkanov charms London in St Petersburg invasion

By Mark Pullinger, 08 November 2014

“Never look encouragingly at the brass,” was one of Richard Strauss’ conducting commandments. Yuri Temirkanov took this maxim to heart, barely looking at any members of his St Petersburg Philharmonic during an absorbing account of Shostakovich’sSymphony no. 10 in E minor.

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London

09 Nov 2014

Yuri Temirkanov charms London in St Petersburg invasion

By Mark Pullinger

London

A Tavener première, impassioned Bartók and a surprise cameo from Mozart

By Jack Johnson, 23 July 2014

The BBC Symphony Orchestra première the first of two late works by John Tavener this Proms season and Isabelle Faust excels in Bartók and Bach.

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London

25 Jul 2014

A Tavener première, impassioned Bartók and a surprise cameo from Mozart

By Jack Johnson

Edinburgh

Imaginative fusion of Shostakovich and Gershwin in Edinburgh

By Alan Coady, 16 May 2014

An imaginative RSNO programme sandwiching fusionist Gershwin between unbelievably contrasting Shostakovich, seasoned with a little re-titling.

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Edinburgh

19 May 2014

Imaginative fusion of Shostakovich and Gershwin in Edinburgh

By Alan Coady

Vienna

Tan Dun and Shostakovich form a dark, compelling programme in Vienna

By Chanda VanderHart, 25 April 2014

A percussion concerto tribute to natural disasters and a dark snapshot of post-Stalinist Russia make for a compelling programme from the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Krzysztof Urbański and soloist Martin Grubinger.

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Vienna

27 Apr 2014

Tan Dun and Shostakovich form a dark, compelling programme in Vienna

By Chanda VanderHart

Glasgow

Outstanding Shostokovich 10 from the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland in Glasgow

By David Smythe, 01 August 2013

In a pioneering development, the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland have added a new orchestra to its family which now encompasses eight playing groups. There are now three orchestras providing a full development pathway for talented players aged 8 to 25, starting with the Junior Orchestra, through the new Senior Orchestra and culminating in the flagship National Youth Orchestra of Scotland.

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Glasgow

05 Aug 2013

Outstanding Shostokovich 10 from the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland in Glasgow

By David Smythe

London

Prom 13: National Youth Orchestra of the USA with Joshua Bell and Valery Gergiev

By Katherine Dixson, 21 July 2013

As Proms debuts go, this would be difficult to beat. The newly formed National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA) were fresh – literally, certainly no sign of fatigue – from an intensive two-week training residency followed by a tour which included the tall order of taking Tchaikovsky to Russia.

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London

23 Jul 2013

Prom 13: National Youth Orchestra of the USA with Joshua Bell and Valery Gergiev

By Katherine Dixson

Montreal

Vasily Petrenko conducts the OSM in Barber and Shostakovich

By Alan Yu, 28 November 2012

My return to La Maison Symphonique in Montreal on Wednesday was a bag full of surprises. The Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal opened with a work I didn’t even know was on the programme; the accompanying orchestra put in a stronger showing than the soloist in the concerto; and a difficult symphony was done so well it practically jumped at the audience.

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Montreal

30 Nov 2012

Vasily Petrenko conducts the OSM in Barber and Shostakovich

By Alan Yu

Los Angeles

Hope and defiance in Petrenko's Shostakovich 10 with the LA Phil

By Ted Ayala, 23 November 2012

Can Shostakovich without bitterness still be Shostakovich? Can a performer still do justice to his music if their interpretation does not match the style and tone of Soviet-era musicians? These questions rise to the fore as the living memory of Dmitri Shostakovich fades further with every passing year.

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Los Angeles

30 Nov 2012

Hope and defiance in Petrenko's Shostakovich 10 with the LA Phil

By Ted Ayala

London

Beethoven, Vine and Shostakovich from Sinaisky and the LPO

By David Karlin, 17 October 2012

At first sight, last night’s London Philharmonic Orchestra concert at the Royal Festival Hall was a typical piece of programming: a well known, relatively undemanding opener, a big symphony to close, and a première of a newly written work sandwiched carefully in between.

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London

18 Oct 2012

Beethoven, Vine and Shostakovich from Sinaisky and the LPO

By David Karlin