Written under difficult circumstances while he was employed at the Moscow Conservatory, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No 1 held the composer’s affection throughout his life as “a sin of my sweet youth”. The melodic richness and skillful orchestration in his later music can already be found in this and the Symphony No 2, which owes its subtitle to the use of folk music from the Ukraine, a region known as ‘Little Russia’. These youthful masterpieces are heard here “in performances full of grace and zest. Schwarz is a passionate advocate of this music, and it shows.” (The Seattle Times)