To What Extent is Shostakovich’s Oratorio Song of the Forests a Survival Strategy of Protecting His Career under Stalinist Ideological Control Rather than an Artwork of Genuine Individual Expression

Qinyu Zhou

doi:10.54254/2753-7064/2025.BJ29095

Communications in Humanities ResearchOpen access

To What Extent is Shostakovich’s Oratorio Song of the Forests a Survival Strategy of Protecting His Career under Stalinist Ideological Control Rather than an Artwork of Genuine Individual Expression

Research Article

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To What Extent is Shostakovich’s Oratorio Song of the Forests a Survival Strategy of Protecting His Career under Stalinist Ideological Control Rather than an Artwork of Genuine Individual Expression

Qinyu Zhou ^1*

¹ Shanghai United International School

^*Corresponding author: nicole_qy@163.com

Published on 5 November 2025

CHR Vol.96

ISSN (Print): 2753-7072

ISSN (Online): 2753-7064

ISBN (Print): 978-1-80590-523-3

ISBN (Online): 978-1-80590-524-0

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Abstract

The Soviet Union limited the creation of musical pieces by composers during Stalin’s reign. The state gradually strengthened the degree of ideological control from the 1930s to the 1940s, forcing composers to create music works that enhanced the Soviet ideologies and followed the Socialist Realist style. This paper focuses on Dmitri Shostakovich’s works and his music career under Stalinist rule, aiming to evaluate how his works and his attitude towards state control were affected. By using his oratorio Song of the Forests as a case study, this paper examines the extent to which this oratorio is a genuine artistic expression of Shostakovich or represents his conformity to the strict doctrine. The musical score of this oratorio reveals several features that align with Socialist Realist expectations. Considering the historical context of the increasing severity of censorship, this paper argues that this oratorio implied Shostakovich’s adaptation to state control, functioning more as a survival strategy rather than an artwork. This investigation displays the effects of censorship on cultural diversity and artistic freedom, as well as reflecting the difficulty of maintaining individual expression under state oppression.

Keywords:

Dimitri Shostakovich, Soviet Union, Ideological Control, Song of the Forests

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References

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[3]. Frolova-Walker, Marina. 2009. “The Glib, the Bland, and the Corny: An Aesthetic of Socialist Realism.” In Music and Dictatorship in Europe and Latin America, edited by Roberto Illiano and Massimiliano Sala, 403–23. Turnhout: Brepols Publishers.

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[5]. Strayer, Hope R. 2013. “Altered but Not Silenced: How Shostakovich Retained His Voice as an Artist despite the Demands of a Dictator.” Musical Offerings 4 (2): Article 2. Cedarville University. https: //digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/musicalofferings/vol4/iss2/2.

[6]. Pravda. 1936. “Muddle instead of Music.” Pravda, January 28, 1936. Archived at Wayback Machine. https: //web.archive.org/web/20110127123117/http: //www.arnoldschalks.nl/tlte1sub1.html.

[7]. Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks). 1932. “Reconstruction of Literary and Artistic Organizations.” Seventeen Moments in Soviet History. Michigan State University. Accessed September 10, 2025. https: //soviethistory.msu.edu/1934-2/writers-congress/writers-congress-texts/reconstruction-of-literary-and-artistic-organizations/.

[8]. Tarakano Notes. n.d. “ [Full Score] Shostakovich – Song of the Forests (oratorio), Op. 81.” YouTube. Accessed September 10, 2025. https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqkxghfTuU4.

[9]. Smith, Roger W. 2018. “Shostakovich, ‘Песнь о лесах’ (the Song of the Forests).” Roger’s Gleanings. December 2, 2018. https: //rogersgleanings.com/2018/12/02/shostakovich-%D0%BF%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8C-%D0%BE-%D0%BB%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%B0%D1%85-the-song-of-the-forests/.

References

[6]. Pravda. 1936. “Muddle instead of Music.” Pravda, January 28, 1936. Archived at Wayback Machine. https: //web.archive.org/web/20110127123117/http: //www.arnoldschalks.nl/tlte1sub1.html.

[8]. Tarakano Notes. n.d. “ [Full Score] Shostakovich – Song of the Forests (oratorio), Op. 81.” YouTube. Accessed September 10, 2025. https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqkxghfTuU4.

Cite this article

Zhou,Q. (2025). To What Extent is Shostakovich’s Oratorio Song of the Forests a Survival Strategy of Protecting His Career under Stalinist Ideological Control Rather than an Artwork of Genuine Individual Expression. Communications in Humanities Research,96,15-22.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

About volume

Volume title: Proceedings of ICADSS 2025 Symposium: Consciousness and Cognition in Language Acquisition and Literary Interpretation

ISBN: 978-1-80590-523-3(Print) / 978-1-80590-524-0(Online)

Editor: Yanhua Qin

Conference website: https://2025.icadss.org/Beijing.html

Conference date: 20 October 2025

Series: Communications in Humanities Research

Volume number: Vol.96

ISSN: 2753-7064(Print) / 2753-7072(Online)

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