Dmitry Shostakovich was one of the foremost musical figures in the last century. This program includes three of his works hailing from different genres. His Cello Concerto No.2 shows despair (in contrast to the upbeat openness of his first), a reflection of the composer’s troubled psyche near the end of his life. The Gadfly was a film score adapted into a suite by Levon Atovmyan that remains popular in the orchestral repertory. Shostakovich’s No.9, compared with his darker seventh and eighth symphonies, is celebrated as an anthem of hope at the end of war. Opening the concert is Snowy Reverie by Alatanmaoni from the NCPA Young Composers Programme. Inspired by footsteps in the snow, the music alludes to herdsmen nearby singing their indigenous folk songs.