Work: Symphony no. 5 in D minor, Op.47

Conformist or closet dissident? Dmitri Shostakovich had to adapt, chameleon-like, to the changing political climate in the Soviet Union, toeing the party line where necessary, but planting his music with coded messages.

Ahead of her first concerts with the Philharmonia, the Chinese conductor talks about Shostakovich and the challenges of performing four concerts in four venues in four days.