When I was attending the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, I would often drive down 95 to hear the National Symphony play. Slava was music director then, and he often got uneven results from his band. The Russian/Soviet repertory, however, was the one area in which both Slava and his orchestra consistantly excelled. The pathos of this music is brought out in vivid, slashing colors. The brasses snarl, the strings are supple and strong, the winds pungeant and evocative of tone. This is perhaps, along with the No. 7 "Leningrad" his definitive wartime symphony. It´s a great ride with this master of the Russian repertoire and his orchestra.