The Song of the Forests «Песнь о лесах», Op. 81, is an oratorio by Dmitri Shostakovich composed in the summer of 1949. It was written to celebrate the forestation of the Russian steppes following the end of World War II. Premiered by the Leningrad Philharmonic under Yevgeny Mravinsky on 15 December 1949, the work was well received by the government, earning the composer a Stalin Prize the following year.

Original Name Pesn' o lesakh
Librettist (after Dolmatovsky)
Date of composition 1949 (Summer 1949)
Premiered 1949, December 15th in Saint Petersburg, Russia
Type Oratorio
Catalogue Op. 81
Approx. duration 40 minutes
Spoken language Russian
Instruments Orchestra
Male Chorus
Children's chorus
Voice (Tenor)
Voice (Bass)
Autotranslations beta Dmitri Chostakovitch: The Song of the Forests, Op. 81
Dmitrij Šostakovič: The Song of the Forests, Op. 81
Dmitri Dmitrijewitsch Schostakowitsch: The Song of the Forests, Op. 81