The Year 1905
I know that “Bluetrain” is devoted to jazz music, but, as Duke once said, there is no well-defined boundary between jazz and classical music, so let me just recommend one beautiful symphony here. It’s Shostakovich’s 11th, also known as “The year 1905”.
I guess that among all of his compositions, the best known are his early ones. Among symphonies, obviously the fifth and the seventh (“Leningrad”). I’ve never heard “The year 1905” before, until last evening at Warsaw Academy of Music. Now that’s an awesome piece of music to say the least. Has a wonderful main theme with a marvelous melody, followed by a powerful forte with percussion and brass. Great harmony, intriguing instrumentation, stunning final. Grab some record if you can.