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Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich

(1906-1975), Composer

Sitter in 4 portraits
Born and educated in in St. Petersburg, Shostakovich entered the conservatory at the age of thirteen to study piano and composition. His graduation piece, Symphony No. 1, premiered in 1926 to international acclaim. Shostakovich's most renowned works include his fifteen symphonies, string quartets, operas, concertos, ballets, jazz suites and almost forty film scores. Throughout his life he struggled to reconcile his creativity with the demands of government-imposed standards of Soviet art.

Watch a film clip on the sitter from the BBC Archive in the Media section below

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Dmitri Shostakovich, by Ida Kar - NPG x31637

Dmitri Shostakovich

by Ida Kar
2 1/4 inch square film negative, 1959
NPG x31637

Dmitri Shostakovich, by Ida Kar - NPG x132751

Dmitri Shostakovich

by Ida Kar
vintage bromide print, 1959
NPG x132751

Dmitri Shostakovich, by Ida Kar - NPG x132752

Dmitri Shostakovich

by Ida Kar
vintage bromide print, 1959
NPG x132752

Benjamin Britten and other musicians, by E.I. Iavno - NPG x15246

Benjamin Britten and other musicians

by E.I. Iavno
bromide print, March 1963
NPG x15246

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