Behind the Iron Curtain: Stalinism

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the collapse of the Soviet Union. To commemorate this momentous event, this RCM series presents a selection of music from behind the Iron Curtain. All of the works being performed are by 'nonconformist' or 'unofficial' composers: modernist composers whose works and ideas were divergent from the more conservative or traditionalist styles taught in the conservatoires at the time. Shostakovich's String Quartet No 4 in D, Op 83; Charlie Sdraulig's 'interior' (world premiere); Shostakovich's Preludes and Fugues, Op 87 (No 5 in A); 'Iz yevreyskoy narodnoy poezii' ('From Jewish Folk Poetry'), Op 79; and Ustvolskaya's Octet.