Pictures and descriptions from SSO website:

Uncover the dramatic and subversive world of Shostakovich with "The Barbarian Artist," a concert centered around his powerful Symphony No. 5.

This piece is renowned for its complex layers of false patriotism and hidden political commentary, written during a time when the composer was under intense scrutiny by Stalin’s regime.

The symphony’s finale quotes an unpublished song about a "barbarian artist" whose work is mindlessly destroyed, a likely reference to the stifling censorship of the Soviet era. The program also features the overture to Mozart’s Don Giovanni, the story of a brutish and promiscuous man whose misdeeds ultimately lead to his dramatic downfall into hell.

Adding to the evening’s intensity is Grieg’s iconic Piano Concerto in A minor, a work of great emotional depth and virtuosic brilliance, performed by the talented pianist Ying Li. This concert offers a profound exploration of music as a form of resistance and expression, showcasing the resilience of the human spirit in the face of oppression. Join us for a night of powerful music and historical intrigue, as we delve into the depths of artistic defiance and political subversion.