| There is hardly a Russian in sight, but the Shostakovich symphony cycle underway with conductor John Storgårds and the BBC Philharmonic have been quite successful; this one made classical best-seller lists in the summer of 2025. The repertory here is quite suited to Storgårds’ rather precise approach, with strands of the mature Shostakovich style emerging from these early works. Indeed, one major attraction here is the presence of two early Shostakovich Scherzos, the earlier one of which, Op. 1, was composed when he was only 13. It is hard to sort out the future Shostakovich in these pieces, but they are certainly competent orchestral pieces for a teenager. Shostakovich is absolutely recognizable in the Symphony No. 1 in F minor, Op. 10, however. The work was premiered in 1926, and it overflows with melodies of the type that would characterize his symphonies at the end, with a Russian-folkish bent derailed by a certain tense sarcasm. It is an excellent performance of this work, with momentum, precision, and lightness. The BBC Philharmonic also sounds great in the Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 20 (“The First of May”), from 1929; hear the clean string work in the Andante fifth movement and Storgårds’ control over the tricky tempo broadening in the movement before that. This was the only one of Shostakovich’s symphonies that the composer later rejected; as so often with Shostakovich, some have tried to reinterpret this work, but to these ears, with its revolutionary “May Day” choral finale, it sounds like the kind of music Shostakovich would later be forced to write. Nonetheless, Storgårds’ performance is again persuasive; he does not put more into the music than is there. The MediaCity sound is ideal for Storgårds’ readings, which bode well for further entries in his series.
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #01] Scherzo in F-Sharp Minor, Op. 1
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #02] Scherzo in E-Flat Major, Op. 7
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #03] Symphony No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 10: I. Allegretto
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #04] Symphony No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 10: II. Allegro
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #05] Symphony No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 10: III. Lento
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #06] Symphony No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 10: IV. Allegro molto
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #07] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: Ia. Allegretto – Più mosso
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #08] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: Ib. Allegro
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #09] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: Ic. Più mosso – Meno mosso
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #10] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: Id. Allegro
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #11] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: II. Andante – Meno mosso
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #12] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: IIIa. Allegro – Poco meno mosso
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #13] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: IIIb. Andante – Largo
Hallé Choir – [Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3 “The First of May” & Scherzos, Opp. 1 & 7 CD01 #14] Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 “The First of May”: IV. Moderato |
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