Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 2 | Symphony No. 4
Daniil Trifonov, Andris Nelsons, Gewandhausorchester

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dmitri Shostakovich’s death in 2025, the Leipzig Gewandhaus organized a unique festival featuring world-class artists and orchestras. The opening concert was the first highlight: the Gewandhausorchester, under the baton of its music director Andris Nelsons, performed Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with the acclaimed pianist Daniil Trifonov as well Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 4.

Shostakovich wrote his Piano Concerto No.2 in 1957 for his 19-year-old son, Maxim. The lightness and playful, youthful energy of the concertante work stands in contrast to the massive Symphony No. 4, which was composed in 1936. It requires the second largest orchestra in Shostakovich’s œuvre and is uncompromising, sometimes brutal, and not nearly as lyrical as Shostakovich’s later works. He was forced by communist party officials to withdraw his symphony and concert directors were afraid of the consequences of a premiere. The first performance did not take place until many years later, in December 1961.