Pathétique with Rostropovich

The first NSO Showcase of the year is November 6th, following the presidential election, so it is only fitting that we begin with a perfect example of American music, Samuel Barber’s nostalgic Knoxville: Summer of 1915 starring the ravishing South African soprano, Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha. The concert continues with a performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24, featuring guest soloist Nikolai Lugansky, with Manfred Honeck conducting. The grand finale comes from a 1990 Sony recording of former NSO music director Mstislav Rostropovich’s triumphant return to Moscow performing Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony, the “Pathétique.”