Symphony No. 6 in B minor ‘Pathétique’ is the culmination of Tchaikovsky’s symphonic canon. It charts a monumental course from its opening – the longest symphonic movement he ever wrote – through a powerful march-scherzo to a shattering, lamenting finale. The fantasy-overture after Shakespeare’s Hamlet is an insightful character study. The much-admired Tchaikovsky recordings of the Utah Symphony Orchestra and Maurice Abravanel – who brought the orchestra to prominence as one of America’s most distinctive and respected – were originally released in 1974.