لنینگراد: محاصره و سمفونی، قربانی استالین، گرسنه شده توسط هیتلر، جاودانه شده توسط شاستاکوویچ

Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony was first played in the city of its birth on 9 August, 1942. There has never been a first performance to match it. Pray God, there never will be again. Almost a year earlier, the Germans had begun their blockade of the city. Already many thousands had died of their wounds, the cold, and most of all, starvation. The assembled musicians - scrounged from frontline units and military bands, for only twenty of the orchestra's 100 players had survived - were so hungry, many feared they'd be too weak to play the score right through. In these, the darkest days of the Second World War, the music and the defiance it inspired provided a rare beacon of light for the watching world. In Leningrad: Siege and Symphony, Brian Moynahan sets the composition of Shostakovich's most famous work against the tragic canvas of the siege itself and the years of repression and terror that preceded it. In vivid and compelling detail he tells the story of the cruelties heaped by the twin monsters of the twentieth century on a city of exquisite beauty and fine minds, and of its no less remarkable survival. Weaving Shostakovich's own story and that of many others into the context of the maelstrom of Stalin's purges and the brutal Nazi invasion of Russia, Leningrad: Siege and Symphony is a magisterial and moving account of one of the most tragic periods in history Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony Was First Played In The City Of Its Birth On 9 August, 1942. There Has Never Been A First Performance To Match It. Pray God, There Never Will Be Again. Almost A Year Earlier, The Germans Had Begun Their Blockade Of The City. Already Many Thousands Had Died Of Their Wounds, The Cold, And Most Of All, Starvation. The Assembled Musicians--scrounged From Frontline Units And Military Bands, For Only Twenty Of The Orchestra's 100 Players Had Survived--were So Hungry, Many Feared They'd Be Too Weak To Play The Score Right Through. In These, The Darkest Days Of The Second World War, The Music And The Defiance It Inspired Provided A Rare Beacon Of Light For The Watching World. In Leningrad: Siege And Symphony, Brian Moynahan Sets The Composition Of Shostakovich's Most Famous Work Against The Tragic Canvas Of The Siege Itself And The Years Of Repression And Terror That Preceded It. In Vivid And Compelling Detail He Tells The Story Of The Cruelties Heaped By The Twin Monsters Of The Twentieth Century On A City Of Exquisite Beauty And Fine Minds, And Of Its No Less Remarkable Survival. Weaving Shostakovich's Own Story And That Of Many Others Into The Context Of The Maelstrom Of Stalin's Purges And The Brutal Nazi Invasion Of Russia, Leningrad: Siege And Symphony Is A Magisterial And Moving Account Of One Of The Most Tragic Periods In History. Ouvertyura = Overture -- Repressii = Terror -- Voyna = War -- Do Serediny Sentyabr' = To Mid-september 1941 -- Do Serediny Oktyabr' = To Mid-october 1941 -- Oktyabr' = October 1941 -- Noyabr' = November 1941 -- Dekabr' = December 1941 -- Noviy God = New Year -- Yanvar' = January 1942 -- Fevral' = February 1942 -- Mart = March 1942 -- Aprel'-maj = April-may 1942 -- Iyun' = June 1942 -- Iyul' = July 1942 -- Simfonya Nr. 7 = Symphony No. 7 -- Do Svidaniya = Farewell. Brian Moynahan. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 494-520) And Index.

The “gripping story” of a Nazi blockade, a Russian composer, and a ragtag band of musicians who fought to keep up a besieged city’s morale ( The New York Times Book Review ).
 
For 872 days during World War II, the German Army encircled the city of Leningrad—modern-day St. Petersburg—in a military operation that would cripple the former capital and major Soviet industrial center. Palaces were looted and destroyed. Schools and hospitals were bombarded. Famine raged and millions died, soldiers and innocent civilians alike.
 
Against the backdrop of this catastrophe, historian Brian Moynahan tells the story of Dmitri Shostakovich, whose Seventh Symphony was first performed during the siege and became a symbol of defiance in the face of fascist brutality. Titled “Leningrad” in honor of the city and its people, the work premiered on August 9, 1942—with musicians scrounged from frontline units and military bands, because only twenty of the orchestra’s hundred members had survived.
 
With this compelling human story of art and culture surviving amid chaos and violence, Leningrad: Siege and Symphony “brings new depth and drama to a key historical moment” ( Booklist, starred review), in “a narrative that is by turns painful, poignant and inspiring” ( Minneapolis Star-Tribune ).
 
“He reaches into the guts of the city to extract some humanity from the blood and darkness, and at its best Leningrad captures the heartbreak, agony and small salvations in both death and survival . . . Moynahan’s descriptions of the battlefield, which also draw from the diaries of the cold, lice-ridden, hungry combatants, are haunting.” — The Washington Post
 

Places the composition of Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony and its 1942 performance during the siege of Leningrad in the context of the city's intellectual and social life and its sufferings from Stalinist terror as much as from the Nazi invasion.