Pathétique | Frost Symphony Orchestra

Conductor Gerard Schwarz leads a program featuring works by Mozart and Tchaikovsky, with flutist Chi Ting as soloist.

The concert opens with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385, known as the “Haffner” Symphony. Written in 1782 and named for the Haffner family, who commissioned the work, the four-movement piece was originally conceived as a serenade before Mozart reworked it as a symphony.

Chi Ting joins the program for Mozart’s Flute Concerto in D major, K. 314/285d. Mozart adapted the work from his Oboe Concerto in C major, K. 314, creating a technically demanding concerto that has become an important part of the flute repertoire.

The program concludes with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74, known as the “Pathétique.” It was the final symphony premiered during Tchaikovsky’s lifetime, debuting nine days before his death. Its title comes from the Russian “Pateticheskaya,” a term associated with passion and deep emotion.