5 Favourite Shostakovich Symphonies - poll

[Bulldog]

4, 5, 8, 10 and 15.

[karlhenning]

Fun poll! Still tough for me to decide just where the "cut-off" should be . . . but fairly solid for me: n^os. 4, 5, 8, 10 & 15

(I think n^os. 2 & 3 are better than many gve them credit for, but . . . no, I couldn't see them up in anyone's Top 5 . . . .)

[DavidW]

9 and 14 are great, I'm surprised more people don't love the dark 14th or the understated neoclassical 9th.

[karlhenning]

This poll is causing me to consider listening the ones, 2, 3, 9, 12 & 14 that are scoring lower on the poll.

There, you see . . . 14 is one which I should have listed in my top 5 another time.  And 9 deserves more love, too.

[TheGSMoeller]

9 and 14 are great, I'm surprised more people don't love the dark 14th or the understated neoclassical 9th.

I've always loved No.14, in fact just acquired a new recording which I am highly enjoying...

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[karlhenning]

Curious cover for that symphony, the detail from an icon . . . .

[The new erato]

4, 8, 10, 14, 15.

[Brahmsian]

And 9 deserves more love, too.

That symphony is one fun ride. 

[Sergeant Rock]

4, 8, 10, 14, 15.

Erato and I think much alike...not quite alike but damn close 

4, 8. 9, 14, 15

5, 6, and 13 are the ones I despair leaving behind.

Sarge

[kishnevi]

Curious cover for that symphony, the detail from an icon . . . .

I've read an analysis of 14 which argued it was a sort of Requiem--or more exactly, an anti-Requiem, the Requiem an atheist might write.

[eyeresist]

I've read an analysis of 14 which argued it was a sort of Requiem--or more exactly, an anti-Requiem, the Requiem an atheist might write.

Britten and Brahms don't count?

[kishnevi]

Britten and Brahms don't count?

Britten was writing to express his pacificism, and Brahms wrote an overtly religious work (besides, I'm not sure if he can be classified as an atheist).   Shostakovich, according to this argument, was writing a Requiem based on the idea of death as extinction and a universe without a moral core (meaning God).  And the article was dealing with the 14th in particular without any references to other works, even those by Shostakovich.

[The new erato]

Erato and I think much alike...not quite alike but damn close 

4, 8. 9, 14, 15

5, 6, and 13 are the ones I despair leaving behind.

Sarge

In  fact I was wondering about the 9th when I wrote the list, it probably would have been my 6th choice.

[The new erato]

I've read an analysis of 14 which argued it was a sort of Requiem--or more exactly, an anti-Requiem, the Requiem an atheist might write.

I think that's pretty accurate. And besides, it is one of the great orchestral song cycles, in my mind up there with Mahler' Lied vDE, and Frank Martin's Cornet (another bleak cycle, interesting enough based on Rilke which also Shostakovich choose to include).

[Wanderer]

I'm surprised more people don't love the dark 14th or the understated neoclassical 9th.

People voting in a poll for a numerus clausus of choices among multiple options doesn't mean they might not like/love the other options they don't vote for. Sometimes it does, but it's also a matter of precedence of preference. Had the poll allowed for more votes, you'd have seen more votes for these works, as well.  Don't be surprised, then, just be more nuanced in your expectations. 

[techniquest]

1,4,8,11,13,15 - oh no, that's 6!
Personally I don't consider no.14 to be a symphony in the same way that I don't consider the '7 Romances after poems by Blok' to be a symphony. I'd see 'The Execution of Stefan Razin' more symphonic than No.14.

[madaboutmahler]

voted for 5, 6, 10, 11, 12.

Cannot believe that no.12 has so few votes! What does everyone have against this symphony?! I think it's one of the most thrilling of the lot!

Daniel

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

voted for 5, 6, 10, 11, 12.

Cannot believe that no.12 has so few votes! What does everyone have against this symphony?! I think it's one of the most thrilling of the lot!

Daniel

I love the music of the Twelfth, but only in its 'original' form - as the soundtrack to Eisenstein's film October.


Watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k62eaN9-TLY

[madaboutmahler]

I love the music of the Twelfth, but only in its 'original' form - as the soundtrack to Eisenstein's film October.


Watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k62eaN9-TLY

hmmm.... wasn't that his 2nd symphony though?
Daniel

[Brahmsian]

voted for 5, 6, 10, 11, 12.

Cannot believe that no.12 has so few votes! What does everyone have against this symphony?! I think it's one of the most thrilling of the lot!

Daniel

Daniel - I did vote for the 12th.