Xian Conducts Schumann & Beethoven

His Fourth Symphony sees Beethoven at his sunniest, brimming with good humor and geniality, and inspired by the quick wit of his mentor, Joseph Haydn. Robert Schumann insisted that his Cello Concerto was “jolly,” but its maelstrom of internal drama, tension and longing reveals otherwise. Acclaimed cellist Jan Vogler returns to Seattle to perform the work with Music Director Xian Zhang. Nokuthula Ngwenyama’s intriguing Primal Message was inspired by a 1974 interstellar radio message sent to the Hercules Globular Cluster. This intergalactic greeting carried information about humanity, Earth and our place in the universe, intended for any being that might have ears to hear it.