After a few decades of neglect, audiences the world over once again marvel at the music of Dmitri Shostakovich, and there is no doubt that the Russian is one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. Without question, András Keller and Concerto Budapest have played a key part in the fulfilment in Hungary of the Shostakovich renaissance over the past few years. In fact, the circus-like and jazz tones of the opening Schnittke composition of this homage concert, the film music suite Clowns and Children (1976), also conjure up memories of his renowned fellow composer. David Oistrakh, dedicatee of the Shostakovich Violin Concerto in A minor, said “This work gives the soloist an extremely interesting and attractive task”. The ‘Shakespeare’ solo of the work completed in 1948 but banned until 1955 is taken by Sergei Krylov, a regular guest in Budapest. Shostakovich’s final symphony is rich in quotes: one can discern in the fifteenth motifs of the music of Rossini and Wagner, not to mention Mahler and Glinka.