In 1953, Dmitri Shostakovich broke the "curse of the 9th" by composing his tenth symphony. Widely regarded as his "greatest" symphony, Shostakovich was finally free to compose as he wished, as Stalin had died earlier that year and, along with him, his oppressive regime, which greatly restricted composers (along with other artists and musicians) with the music that they could create. Hidden within the work is a musical depiction of Stalin and cryptograms of Shostakovich's own name, as well as that of a suspected girlfriend. Joy and elation are finally expressed at the end of this emotional and sometimes brooding work.
This Sunday afternoon, October 22nd, the UT Symphony Orchestra will perform this technically and artistically challenging work. The performance is free and open to the public and begins at 4pm in Cox Auditorium, located in the Alumni Memorial building on the UT campus.