An album released on May 2nd: the piano concertos by Dmitri Shostakovich, along with several solo piano pieces, signed by the celebrated pianist Yuja Wang, in collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andris Nelsons. The album is part of the series through which the renowned American ensemble, under the direction of the Latvian conductor, commemorates 50 years since the death of Dmitri Shostakovich on August 9th one of the most significant composers of the 20th century. On March 28th, Deutsche Grammophon released the complete series, that includes the 15 symphonies, the 6 concertos for piano, violin, cello, and orchestra, as well as the opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, which you could already hear on April 27th on Radio România Muzical.

The Boston Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Andris Nelsons, began recording the 15 symphonies by Dmitri Shostakovich in 2015 a project spanning ten years, crowned with several Grammy Awards a truly exceptional complete edition, which will be re-broadcast during the summer of 2025 on Radio România Muzical.

However, the six concertos in the series are all new recordings - the piano concertos with Yuja Wang, the violin concertos with Baiba Skride, and the cello concertos with YoYo Ma, all of them also available individually, released separately.

Naturally, we could expect nothing less than excellence from Yuja Wang clearly evident in her rendition of Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 1 for Piano, Trumpet and Strings, Op. 35, composed in 1933 and recorded in October 2022 in Boston. Alongside Yuja Wang is Thomas Rolfs, principal trumpet of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Twenty-four years separate the two piano concertos composed by Dmitri Shostakovich the second was written in 1957 as a gift from the composer to his son on his 19th birthday. Maxim Shostakovich was also the one who premiered the work, on May 10th, 1957, at the concert marking his graduation from the Moscow Conservatory.

Inventiveness, accessibility, and a great deal of humor are found in this Second Piano Concerto by Dmitri Shostakovich qualities that Yuja Wang captures in her characteristic manner, full of intelligence and vitality.

On August 9th, fifty years will have passed since the death of this great 20th-century composer, Dmitri Shostakovich, and all over the world, performances of his works are a priority this year. All the more so for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which had some of its greatest successes to Shostakovich's music namely, three Grammy Awards earned for performances of three symphonies from the complete Shostakovich cycle.

It is also an opportunity for other musicians to approach his works , Yuja Wang, for instance, includes on this album, alongside the two concertos, several Preludes and Fugues by Dmitri Shostakovich. In 1933, Shostakovich composed his first set of Preludes and Fugues, Op. 34 following the model of Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier and between 1950 and 1951, the second set, Op. 87. A sound world that is austere, introspective, and cerebral Yuja Wang has selected several pieces from both opuses.