Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77

About the work

Composed in 1947-48 at the height of the Zhdanov campaign, locked in a drawer, and premiered by David Oistrakh only in 1955. Its four movements form a suppressed drama: a nocturne of dark undercurrents, a scherzo where the DSCH monogram first appears, a passacaglia of tread-like weight, then a five-minute cadenza that climbs from monologue to scream and crashes straight into the ferocious burlesque finale. Oistrakh called the solo part 'a Shakespearean role'.

Upcoming performances