II. Moderato

Shostakovich Symphony No. 9. Following on the heels of his two great war symphonies, the Ninth was generally expected to be a celebration of Stalin and the imminent victory over the Nazis. Shostakovich wanted to avoid any such programmatic interpretations and therefore came up with 'a pure and perfect, almost neoclassical work' (Mark Wigglesworth).
BBC Music Magazine: Editor's Choice.