Tuesday, March 11 and Sunday, March 16
Amaturo Theater at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts
By Charles Baran
In August of 1941, prior to the United States officially entering World War II, German forces, under Hitler’s command, had surrounded the Russian city of Leningrad. Thus began a siege that lasted 2 years, 4 months, and 19 days. These 872 days remain the longest and most deadly siege in history, resulting in an estimated 1.5 million deaths, mostly from starvation. It is recorded in the annals of history as The Siege of Leningrad.
For Hitler, the anticipated capture of the Russian city held more of a symbolic victory than a strategic one as Leningrad was once the capital of Russia and the ideological center of Bolshevism, which was detested by Hitler and other high-ranking members of the Nazi party. During this time, Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich and his family were residents of Leningrad and it was under these dire conditions that he set upon creating one of his major works, Symphony No. 7, which has come to be known as The Leningrad Symphony.
This month, on March 11, and again on March 16, South Florida’s Symphony of the Americas (SOTA) will perform this monumental work at the Amaturo Theater at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. Both performances will be conducted by SOTA Artistic and Music Director Pablo Mielgo, who continues his mission of bringing the highest level of musicianship and programming to South Florida audiences.
The Leningrad Symphony was written by Shostakovich as a bold act of defiance and resistance to Hitler’s fascist regime. It was completed on December 27, 1941, when the city was 16 weeks into its 125-week siege. It had its Leningrad premiere on August 9, 1942, while the city was surrounded on all sides by Nazi troops. Finding musicians to perform the piece in the besieged city was a challenge, as relentless hunger and illness caused many members of the orchestra to physically collapse under the stress of performing such a strenuous piece. In fact, the orchestra was able to play the symphony all the way through only once prior to the concert. The concert evening was attended by a crowd of emaciated patrons wearing evening clothes that had become too large for their fragile frames. In the ultimate act of defiance to Hitler and his fascist ideology, the music was broadcast throughout the streets of Leningrad making it accessible to everyone. Even Nazi forces on the outskirts of the city’s walls heard the music as it was being performed. Thunderous applause followed the completion of the performance proving that the will of the people would not topple under the thumb of a despotic ruler who sought to destroy and control the citizens of Leningrad for his nefarious goals.
The Leningrad Symphony remains a masterpiece of composition made even more important given the circumstances surrounding its creation. With this knowledge in hand, it is fitting that SOTA presents the work in 2025, when day after day the world as we know it is changing rapidly, with democracies falling, autocrats rising, and liberties and freedoms stripped away.
Tuesday, March 11 at 7:45PM and Sunday, March 16 at 2:00PM. Amaturo Theater at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. For tickets visit sota.org.
