Semyon Bychkov in conversation with Allan Nilles

As a young student, Semyon Bychkov witnessed Dmitri Shostakovich at rehearsals in what was then Leningrad. The depth of the conductor’s understanding of Shostakovich’s music, shaped by repression, is evident in his conversation with violist Allan Nilles about the composer’s Fifth Symphony.

© 2026 Berlin Phil Media GmbH