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Dmitri Shostakovich - The Symphonies
Marina Shaguch Arutjun Kotchinian Prague Philharmonic Chorus
GÜRZENICH-ORCHESTER KÖLN · DMITRIJ KITAJENKO
GÜRZENICH-ORCHESTER KÖLN · DMITRIJ KITAJENKO
12CD-Set · C7435
UPC: 845221074351
Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphonies are arguably the most impressive symphonic cycle of the 20th century – certainly, if you don’t count Gustav Mahler. The depth and variety of these 15 Symphonies, so closely tied to Shostakovich’s personality and the times he lived in, make it particularly rewarding to listen to varying interpretations. Dmitrij Kitajenko’s survey, recorded between 2002 and 2004, has found its place among the great such cycles, both for its artistic merits and its reference sonics, the wide dynamics and the impassioned playing from the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne that the native Leningrad native Kitajenko gets from his musicians.
