Composed in 1941, during one of the deadliest sieges in history, Shostakovich's mighty Seventh Symphony stands as a monument to Leningrad and its citizens and is testament to the horrors of war. Broadcast through loudspeakers, the Symphony rang out through the streets of the beseiged yet defiant city; the score was smuggled out on microfilm, past enemy lines, to its British premiere by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In this recording from 2003, Principal Conductor of the time Kurt Masur brings out all the dark drama of this blistering work, which is so close to the Orchestra's heart.