Symphony No. 3 (Shostakovich)
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The Symphony No. 3 in E flat major (Opus 20; subtitled First of May) by Dmitri Shostakovich was first performed by the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra and Academy Capella Choir under Aleksandr Gauk on 6 November 1931.
Similar to the Second Symphony, it is an experimental work in four continuous sections:
- Allegretto - Allegro
- Andante
- Largo
- Moderato:'V pervoye Pervoye maya'
The symphony lasts around 25 to 30 minutes. The finale sets a text by Semyon Isaakovich Kirsanov praising May Day and the revolution. Interpretation is problematic: in a letter to Boleslav Yavorsky, Shostakovich said that the work "expresses the spirit of peaceful reconstruction"; on the other hand, most of the material preceding the finale is dark in tone, and it originally included a part for machine gun.
External link
Text in English, French, German and Russian (http://www.geocities.com/marxist_lb/Semyon_Kirsanov.htm)