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Written after the death of Stalin, Dmitri Shostakovich's 10th Symphony is often thought of as a response to the end of a cruelly despotic, spiritually crushing era. It is that, to be sure, but as always with this composer, it's also so much more. And this riveting performance by the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Pavel Kogan makes the case for the 10th as the apex of Shostakovich's art. It's a work that combines vicious dissection of the world around him with the extraordinarily pinpointed, even witty musical hodgepodge that was a large part of Shostakovich's repertoire. Kogan and the orchestra zip through this hourlong masterpiece with a verve and confidence that comes from believing in the work's greatness. And they also show their versatility, not only through the 10th's very diverse five movements, but also in the encores: short pieces by Glazunov, Tchaikovsky, Wagner, and--of course--Shostakovich. The Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, the optional musical analysis (in the form of subtitles), liner notes, and bios all round out a superb presentation. --Kevin Filipski
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