Symphony No. 2 (Shostakovich) October Revolution in his Twelfth Symphony, subtitled "The Year 1917". The symphony is a short (about 20 minutes) experimental work in one movement; within this movement are four sections, the last of which includes a chorus. In a marked departure from his First Symphony, Shostakovich composed his Second in a gestural, geometric "music without emotional structure" manner, with the intent of reflecting speech patterns and physical movements in a neo-realistic style. This choice may have been influenced at least partially by Vsevolod Meyerhold's theory of biomechanics. Shostakovich placed far more emphasis on texture in this work than he did on
Yale Symphony Orchestra 1971, the orchestra traveled to France for its first international tour; domestic and international tours have continued to the present day. The membership of today's Yale Symphony Orchestra is composed primarily of undergraduates, who audition in early September and are "tapped," a scaled-down version of the selection of a cappella groups, shortly thereafter. Yale Symphony Orchestra rehearsals take place twice a week for two and a half hours in Woolsey Hall. The orchestra performs five regular concerts per season, with programming varying from the traditional (Beethoven's "Symphony no. 6") to the adventurous (Ligeti's "Apparitions"). The Halloween Show has become a