In this thesis I’m writing about Dmitri Shostakovich’s only Viola Sonata. I’ve read about Shostakovich life and analysed the sonata. Shostakovich’s Sonata is one of the first pieces from the composer that I have listened to and gotten familiar with. It’s one of the most played viola sonatas and a one of a kind in Russian modern music. The purpose is to dig deep into the music and to understand it. Questions like “why am I playing this like this?” or “how should I do this?” regarding the interpretation of the music is the core of this study. The research is also trying to be of help to get an image of viola music overall and what is the place of Shostakovich’s Viola Sonata in this world. How the piece was reacting to the world around it and how it was affected by the history of viola music and what is its position in the future.