Shostakovich Philharmonia

Shostakovich Philharmonia Review

Once part of the private Nobles' Club, the Philharmonia, or Philharmonia Hall, is now home to the St. Petersburg Philharmonic. Its main concert hall, the Bolshoi Zal, with its impressive marble columns, has been the site of many celebrated performances, including the premiere (in 1893) of Tchaikovsky's Sixth (Pathétique) Symphony, with the composer conducting. (This was his final masterpiece; he died nine days later.) More recently, in 1942, when Leningrad was completely blockaded, Dmitri Shostakovich's Seventh (Leningrad) Symphony premiered here, an event broadcast in the same spirit of defiance against the Germans in which it was written. Later the concert hall was officially named for this composer.

A smaller hall, the Maly Zal, around the corner, is also part of the complex 30 Nevsky pr., City Center, 191023. 812/571-8333 box office; 812/571-4237 information.