Today is one of those terrible winter days in Ottawa I dislike so much, dark, foggy, freezing drizzle, unpleasant and gray. So I keep busy reviewing my lecture notes for my presentation on portraits that I prepared for the National Gallery of Canada Volunteer program. I have 2 presentations to do this week.
I also look at YouTube to see what might be interesting. I found this July 1942 recording by the American NBC Orchestra under the baton of Arturo Toscanini of the newly composed Symphony no 7 by Shostakovich. It speaks to the 900 day siege of Leningrad ( St-Petersburg) by the Nazi army and of the terrible suffering of the Russian people. It was a desperate fight to save the city, a poem of resistance against a terrible enemy. I read a few months ago a wonderful book on the Hermitage Museum and what happened during the siege and how the employees sacrificed themselves to save the art works. Our guide during our visit in June had spoken to us about the siege and how in her own family there had been many dead. The cruelty of war is often difficult to understand for someone who has not experienced it.
Shostakovich completed the work around December 1941, he and his family were evacuated from Leningrad towards Moscow. The work in the USSR was premiered by the Orchestra of the City of Kouïbychev (today Samara) by maestro Samuel Samossoud. This symphony was dedicated to Leningrad and its people but today it is seen more as a protest against all forms of Totalitarianism including Stalin's rule.
The Second World War saw 25 million dead in Russia alone. Listening to it I see the images of St- Petersburg and to me it is evocative of that terrible period.
I also just finished the recent book of Mary Soames, the last surviving child of Clementine and Winston Churchill. The book is about her early life and the war years accompanying her father and meeting all the great actors of this drama on the world stage. I will write about the book on a future post.
I also look at YouTube to see what might be interesting. I found this July 1942 recording by the American NBC Orchestra under the baton of Arturo Toscanini of the newly composed Symphony no 7 by Shostakovich. It speaks to the 900 day siege of Leningrad ( St-Petersburg) by the Nazi army and of the terrible suffering of the Russian people. It was a desperate fight to save the city, a poem of resistance against a terrible enemy. I read a few months ago a wonderful book on the Hermitage Museum and what happened during the siege and how the employees sacrificed themselves to save the art works. Our guide during our visit in June had spoken to us about the siege and how in her own family there had been many dead. The cruelty of war is often difficult to understand for someone who has not experienced it.
Shostakovich completed the work around December 1941, he and his family were evacuated from Leningrad towards Moscow. The work in the USSR was premiered by the Orchestra of the City of Kouïbychev (today Samara) by maestro Samuel Samossoud. This symphony was dedicated to Leningrad and its people but today it is seen more as a protest against all forms of Totalitarianism including Stalin's rule.
The Second World War saw 25 million dead in Russia alone. Listening to it I see the images of St- Petersburg and to me it is evocative of that terrible period.
I also just finished the recent book of Mary Soames, the last surviving child of Clementine and Winston Churchill. The book is about her early life and the war years accompanying her father and meeting all the great actors of this drama on the world stage. I will write about the book on a future post.
I don't know whether you saw when you visited Petersburg the Museum of the History of the City, where resides the radio station used to broadcast to the besieged citizens. On top of it is a metronome, which filled in the silence when there were no voices to broadcast. For a brief time one day it stopped; the citizens prepared to die; then back it came, and hope was restored.
ReplyDeleteWe would love to return to St-Petersburg, such a fascinating city.
Deletesuppose I shouldn't mention that it's been in the 80's with sun out and nice breeze for a couple of weeks..? although we are expecting a cold front, which will bring the temps during the day to 70 and as low as 40...hahahahahahaha
ReplyDeleteNo don't mention the temperature. The music in this post sort of illustrates the weather we are having.
DeleteThe music of Mr. S intrigues me - most of the times is seems too nervous, like having one's trousers full of maybugs. But it sounds so cryptic/subtle like slipping a raspberry cheer when you can't be obvious. I think I could hear him over and over and still get more out of it.
ReplyDelete