This concert is generously supported by Arn Sprogis, Margo Woods and Justin Sprogis. Photo: Canberra International Music Festival.
Principal Violin of the Australian Chamber Orchestra Satu Vänskä and modern piano maestro Konstantin Shamray unite for an exploration of the enchanting musical landscapes of Soviet Russia.
The cultural freedom of the Soviet era, especially during the time of the Iron Curtain, was deeply influenced by the political climate that governed all aspects of life. The state’s control over artistic expression often operated through strict laws and policies of censorship that shaped the works of composers like Galina Ustvolskaya, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Sergei Prokofiev.
Ustvolskaya’s Sonata, with its stark minimalism of tolling bells and chorales, reflects the isolation faced by artists who were often forbidden to voice dissent or diverge from state-approved forms of art.
Shostakovich’s Four Preludes exemplify a different kind of struggle: the tension between personal artistic expression, grappling with Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier, and the subtle conformity demanded by the legal oversight of the state’s censorship apparatus.
Meanwhile, Prokofiev’s Violin Sonata No. 1 took eight years to compose and during this time he transitioned from being popular to experiencing Soviet censorship and travel restrictions. It blends defiance with lyricism, weaving in folk influences while subtly critiquing the bureaucratic and legal pressures of the time.
Who would be better than Satu and Kostya to lead us through such a program of works touched by suppression of artistic freedom and weight of state-enforced boundaries, performed inside Australia’s High Court.
The Details
What: Echoes of the Iron Curtain – Canberra International Music Festival
When: Friday 2 May, 3pm
Where: High Court of Australia, Parkes Place, Parkes, ACT
Cost: General Admission $65.00, Concession $60.00. Tickets available via Canberra International Music Festival.
