Shostakovich (1906 - 1975) had his first music lessons with his mother at age 10. He entered the Leningrad Conservatory at 13.

He had a complex relationship with the Soviet government. He suffered two official denunciations of his music in 1936 and 1948 and the periodic banning of his work. The composer responded to the denunciations through his music.

That said, he remained one of the most popular Soviet composers of his generation and received many state awards.