The young Russian cellist Anastasia Kobekina always plays with great emotional expressiveness. Today she will demonstrate this in Dvořák’s compelling,emotional Cello Concerto. She will be joined by the Residentie Orkest conductor Kerem Hasan, who will also performTchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony, Last.” The composer conducted the premiere of this work nine days before his unexpected death. 

Tchaikovsky conducted the premiere ofhis Sixth Symphony inOctober 1893, nine days before his unexpected death. At that time, he was regarded as the greatest Russian composer. This was a happy time for Tchaikovsky. He was not plagued by depression, and his artistic life was at its peak—he had just opened Carnegie Hall in New York as its composer-in-residence. Yet it is a symphony steeped in tragedy, which may explain its nickname, “Pathétique.” The uneven waltz in the second movement and the climax at the end of the third movement foreshadow the deeply sorrowful finale, which ends in silence. 

Passionate, lyrical, and intense—that’s how onemightdescribe Anastasia Kobekina’s performance ofDvořák’s Cello Concerto. The young Russian cellist’s musical commitment and emotional expressiveness are profound and perfectly suited to a piece resonating with love and homesickness. Dvořák once moved from the Czech Republic to New York to become the director of a conservatory there, but he was consumed by homesickness. Inhis Cello Concerto, youhearmore than just a longing for his homeland. In the second movement, he quotes the favorite song of his sister-in-law, Josefina. He had once been hopelessly in love with her. The love was not mutual, and Dvořák married Josefina’s sister.