Shostakovich | Symphony No. 7 in C major, ‘Leningrad’ | London City Orchestra

Few symphonies are so inseparable from the circumstances of their creation as Shostakovich’s Seventh Symphony, “Leningrad”. He began composing it in 1941 as German forces advanced on his native city, completing it after his evacuation while Leningrad endured one of the most terrible sieges in history. The symphony became an immediate symbol of defiance, reaching audiences far beyond the Soviet Union. Most famously, it was performed in the besieged city itself in August 1942 by the surviving musicians of the Leningrad Radio Orchestra, reinforced by players recalled from the front. Broadcast across the city, the performance transformed music into an extraordinary act of resistance: a declaration that, amid destruction, hunger and loss, Leningrad was still alive. That sense of struggle runs through a work of enormous emotional and orchestral scale. In the first movement, an apparently harmless marching tune begins quietly over the rhythm of a snare drum, repeating again and again as more instruments join and the music grows inexorably into something terrifying — the celebrated “invasion” theme. But this is more than a musical portrait of an advancing army. Across its four movements, Shostakovich explores something broader and more human: fear and brutality, remembrance and grief, but also dignity, endurance and hope. The symphony eventually fights its way towards a blazing C-major conclusion, yet its triumph never feels entirely comfortable or carefree. The scars of what has gone before remain audible, giving the final pages their remarkable power: not simply a celebration of victory, but an affirmation of the human capacity to endure. Recorded live at Sinfonia Smith Square, Westminster on 4th July 2026 Conducted by Thomas Payne and performed by the London City Orchestra https://www.londoncityorchestra.com/ For more great music & interviews:    / @vjsessions   Orchestra Members Violin 1 Tim Yap (Leader) Andrew Johnson Romy Shioda Jun Ying Poon Marie Lee Pip Booth William Attwell Sima Jovanovic Tania Wimpenny Andrew Xu Charles Finn Violin 2 Diego Becciolini Lizzie Millar Louise Bracken Till Stehr Marine Delgrange Terence Au Quentin Vigneau Claire Mouradian Jim Tse Viola John Hinchliffe Tom Fotheringham India Golding Adrian Gordon Emily Nevin Kate Foster Emily Colyer Hannah Jones Sophie Huffer Stuart Taylor James Hobley Cello Rebecca Burden Chris Dyer Ferec Necef Tom Hosted Emma Farmer Robbi Sher Max Bamford John Donaldson Alice Howick Double Bass Lilia Collier-Smith Noam Elron Yelyzaveta Bahlai Aaron Aguayo Juarez Harp Fiona Thompson Anna Cameli Piano Marisa Cooper Flute Mark Carey Gavin Stewart Amanda Butler (picc) Oboe Craig White Alice Liow Anna Pyshkin (cor anglais) Clarinet Ralph Lane Andrew McCroskie Duncan Fraser (Eb clarinet) Sam Nugée (bass clarinet) Bassoon Lucy Powell Siobhan Connellan Grace Meadows (contra) Horn Dominic Harries Rebecca Nellis Xavier Delamotte Helen Cass Alex Regan Charlotte Smith Seb Barley Adam Wilson Zack Hart Trumpet Lukas Geiger Pippa Scourse Dan Greenhalgh Benji Day Ed East David Critchley Nick Smith Trombone George Meeks Carter Holloran Alex East (tenor/ bass) George Du Bois (tenor/ bass) Alfie Bousfield (bass) Archie Foster (bass) Tuba Dafydd Owen Timpani James Green Percussion Tony Lucas Charlie Hodge Calum Crosbie Zach Mitchell Jonathan Carr Sana Abu-Jabir