The Siege of Leningrad (name of St. Petersburg in those days) by Nazi fascists started on September 8, 1941 and continued for 872 days until January 27, 1944. The blockade was finally broken on January 18 1944, when Soviet Army managed to open a narrow corridor into the city, with the city completely liberated by January 27, 1944. According to different sources and statistics from 632k to 1.5M Leningrad residents died during the blockade, mostly of starvation and extremely cold temperatures.
The Siege of Leningrad became the biggest tragedy of the city ever which is affected it’s absolutely each resident. The entire city was in blockage. So every year since 1944, at the 27th of January, the people of Leningrad (St. Petersburg) commemorate the End of Siege of Leningrad. Probably, one of the biggest genocide in all Human’s history.
Dmitry Shostakovich, one of the greatest Russian composers, was born in Leningrad in 1906. He lived in the city and opened his music genius there.
The beginning of the World War II and the Siege of his city touched him as much as in 1941, being impressed with the nightmare of the War, he wrote his Seventh Symphony in C major op.60 (also known as “Leningradskaya”). It was based on the drafts he initially was dedicated to the life and deeds of Vladimir Lenin.
Probably, such a powerful and tragical Symphony could be born only under the inspiration of bloody nightmare of the war.
In the summer of 1942, the score of “Symphony 7” was delivered to Leningrad where a starving collective of Leningrad Radio Orchestra (nowadays Saint Petersburg Academic Orchestra) conducted by Karl Eliasberg started the rehearsals. Some musicians are died from hunger. They had to call the musicians from the nearest military units.
At the 9th of August, 1942, they performed the premier of the “Symphony 7” at the Grand Hall of Leningrad Philharmonic. There is a commemorative plague about it. In 1975, the Grand Hall of Leningrad Philharmonic was named after Dmitry Dmitrievich Shostakovich.
The concert was broadcasted on the radio and street speakers. German troops listened to it too. Later they told they did understand the war will be lost because “we felt your spirit which will go through hunger, fear and death”.
“Symphony 7” powerfully inspirited the soldier of Red Army and people of Leningrad. It is really became the music symbol of the End of Siege of Leningrad.
Dmitry Shostakovich became one of the most severe troops of the war! Just his weapon was not a gun but the Music!
At the 27th of January, 2019, as a new resident of St. Petersburg, in the morningI came to the Military Parade at the Palace Square to share this date with it’s native people. And in the evening as a big fan of Dmitry Shostakovich I came back again for another event – panoramic 3D-light show based on the fragments of “Seventh Symphony”.
For contributions – http://realrussiablog.com/donate