On December 27, 1941, Shostakovich completed his "Leningrad" symphony. This appellative is commonly thought to indicate the German terrible siege of the city during the World War II. It was, however, written before then, and Shostakovich clarifies: "Even before the war, there probably wasn't a single family who hadn't lost someone, a father, a brother, or if not a relative, then a close friend. Everyone had someone to cry over, but you had to cry silently, under the blanket, so no one would see. Everyone feared everyone else, and the sorrow oppressed and suffocated us. It suffocated me, too. I had to write about it, I felt it was my responsibility, my duty. I had to write a requiem for all those who died, who had suffered. I had to describe the horrible extermination machine and express protest against it" (from Volkov, Testimony 135).
Second Movement
Third Movement
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