5 Fragments for Small Orchestra, op. 42

The Five Fragments, Op. 42 is a suite for small orchestra composed on June 9, 1935, by Dmitri Shostakovich. It was the only work, apart from film music, that he composed that year. He approached it as preparatory work for the composition of the final version of his Symphony No. 4.
It was unperformed for 29 years after its completion, with Shostakovich indicating in 1941 that he felt it was not of sufficient quality to perform or publish. In the 1960s, he sent a photocopy of the score with his corrections and amended orchestration to Igor Blazhkov, who conducted the world premiere on April 26, 1965, with the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra.
Despite his initial reluctance to publicize the Five Fragments, Shostakovich expressed satisfaction with the music after its premiere. Edison Denisov praised the work's "chamber-like" scoring and said it deserved to be closely studied by composers.