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Shostakovich Fans Look for Political Meaning In His Music

Composer Dmitri Shostakovich, in 1950.
Deutsche Fotothek
Composer Dmitri Shostakovich, in 1950.

The 100th anniversary of the birth of composer Dmitri Shostakovich has been celebrated all year with concerts and recordings of his music. There has also been more discussion about whether his music was written in support of Russia's communist government, or in protest against it.

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Tom Huizenga is a producer for NPR Music. He contributes a wide range of stories about classical music to NPR's news programs and is the classical music reviewer for All Things Considered. He appears regularly on NPR Music podcasts and founded NPR's classical music blog Deceptive Cadence in 2010.
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