August 09, 2017

Music Defeats War


Music Defeats War
In a Leningrad street after a German air raid. {Photo: RIA Novosti archive, image #601181 / Boris Kudoyarov / CC-BY-SA 3.0}

One thing has always had the power to connect humankind across time and space: music.

In June 1941, Nazi Germany invaded Soviet Russia, and later that year laid siege to Leningrad (known today as St. Petersburg). The siege lasted more than two years and killed at least a million people. The conditions in Leningrad during the siege were unimaginably terrible – soldiers died trying to defend the city, while its inhabitants succumbed to illness or hunger. Dead bodies littered the streets, since few could spare the energy to give them a proper burial. In desperation, some resorted to cannibalism.

During these dark times, humanity was revealed at both its worst… and its best. At the height of the horrors of the siege, Karl Eliasberg, a music conductor, received orders to begin rehearsals of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Seventh Symphony. It was nearly impossible for Eliasberg to find enough musicians for his orchestra. An order had to be issued to soldiers at the battlefront, calling for anyone with musical ability to join the orchestra. In this way, rehearsing the symphony united and inspired the people of Leningrad, demonstrating that the people of Leningrad would never give in.

Even when Eliasberg had enough musicians, they had no energy to play their instruments. For they not only had to struggle for food, they also had to deal with their loved ones dying. One in three people perished during the siege. Yet the musicians persevered. On August 9, 1942, despite the odds, the Seventh Symphony was played in Leningrad and broadcast throughout the city and the country. Thankfully, there were no German air raids to interrupt the performance.

A member of the audience, Olga Kvade, recalls, “On the one hand I wanted to cry, but at the same time there was a sense of pride. ‘Damn you, we have an orchestra! We’re at the Philharmonic Hall, so you Germans stay where you are!’ We were surrounded by Germans. They were shelling us, but there was this feeling of superiority.”

The very Germans that she spoke of were listening that day. Their conditions were also bleak, and many soldiers were only there because it was their duty. Everyone who heard the music was moved by it – this stunning act of defiance – regardless of what side of the war they were on.

Shostakovich faced criticism for the piece, as many felt it was too simplistic. Some also believed he had inserted some anti-Stalin undertones. Regardless, in the time and place, his Seventh Symphony, simply named “Leningrad,” was incredibly powerful. It went on to become his most famous piece. Even today, listening to it can give a hint of what the people of Leningrad must have experienced during the invasion. For a little more than 78 minutes, the people of Leningrad showed the world the best of humanity.

Listen to the Seventh Symphony performed.

Dmitry Shostakovich speaks briefly, then plays part of the first movement of the Seventh Symphony.

You Might Also Like

Contact With a Mystery
  • June 17, 2017

Contact With a Mystery

Born on this day in 1882, Igor Stravinsky, one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century, in many ways defined the music of his era. We look back at his Rite of Spring.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

Little Golden Calf
February 01, 2010

Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Faith & Humor
December 01, 2011

Faith & Humor

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

The Moscow Eccentric
December 01, 2016

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955