Shostakovich's Symphony No. 15 in A major, Op. 141 (1971) is the composer's final symphony, completed at his dacha in Repino in the summer of 1971 and premiered in Moscow on 8 January 1972 under his son Maxim. Written while Shostakovich was seriously ill, the four-movement work weaves quotations from Rossini's William Tell Overture and Wagner's Ring cycle into a score that moves from childlike playfulness to a quietly disintegrating finale - widely read as a meditation on mortality. It remains one of the most enigmatic and debated works in the 20th-century symphonic canon.
The Boston Symphony Orchestra's complete 19-disc Shostakovich anthology with Andris Nelsons, including Symphony No. 15, won two Grammy Awards at the 68th ceremony in Los Angeles.
Shostakovich-related recordings won awards in two categories at the International Classical Music Awards 2026, presented at a gala in Bamberg on 18 March.
The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra performed Symphony No. 15 in December 2025, conducted by John Storgårds.
BR-Klassik released a previously unreleased live recording of Symphony No. 15 by Bernard Haitink and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, documenting a 2015 Munich concert.
MusicWeb International published a review of a new LSO Live box set of all 15 Shostakovich symphonies.
