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CARLTON WILKINSON, CORRESPONDENT 10:11 a.m. ET Feb. 10, 2017

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At the State Theatre, the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine will perform Antonin Dvoraks Carnival Overture, Sergei Prokofievs Piano Concerto No. 3, and Dmitri Shostakovichs Symphony No. 5.(Photo: COURTESY OF NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA OF UKRAINE)

An Eastern European ensemble founded a century ago will be performing Feb. 19 at the State Theatre in New Brunswick in a program of early-20th century masterpieces from Russia, Ukraine and the Czech Republic.

Led by the American conductor Theodore Kuchar, the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine will perform Antonin Dvoraks Carnival Overture, Sergei Prokofievs Piano Concerto No. 3, and Dmitri Shostakovichs Symphony No. 5.

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Born in New York City, Kuchar is of Ukrainian descent and previously held the post of artistic director of the NSOU; he is currently conductor laureate. He returns to the podium regularly to lead the ensemble.

Kuchar also served as the director of the Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra (formerly the Czech Radio Orchestra) and the Orquesta Sinfonica de Venezuela. He has more than 100 recordings on Naxos and other labels to his credit, and recently concluded a 20-city tour of the U.S. with the Czech Symphony Orchestra.

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The soloist for the Prokofiev Piano Concerto will be Alexei Grynyuk, a native of Kiev, Ukraine, who has recently performed as soloist with the Bolshoi Symphony Orchestra, Brighton Philharmonic and Krakow Philharmonic. He also performed Liszts B-minor Sonata and piano concertos as part of the composers bicentennial in Kiev.

The program features three composers who were internationally famous in their own lifetimes and who have become so entrenched in global orchestral repertoire that they appear to us somewhat disassociated from their national roots.

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While technically Russian, Prokofiev was born in the Ukraine part of the Russian Empire at the time.

Both he and Shostakovich lived and worked during the Soviet era, both of them struggling in their own ways to maintain careers under the capricious cruelty and censorship of Stalin. Though apolitical for the most part, Prokofievs career, personal life and legacy have seemed inextricably linked to the rule of the Soviet dictator. He even died the same day in the same hour in fact as Stalin.

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The composers funeral was small and absent of flowers because the dictator, even in death, dominated. All the winter flowers had been scooped up as part of the required mourning.

Shostakovich is probably the most famous of the Soviet-era composers now, but his work was purposely ignored in the West during the height of the Cold War, as he was seen as a Stalinist.

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Much of this stems from the misunderstanding of the Symphony No. 5, which he wrote as a reaction to Stalins severe criticism of his music, which caused Shostakovich to fear he would be arrested or worse.

As a result, the composer withdrew his newly completed Symphony No. 4 before it could be premiered. The next work, the Symphony No. 5, was in a simpler style with broad melodies and a clear emotional language.

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The piece bears the inscription intended to appease the authorities (and hopefully save his life): A Soviet artists reply to just criticism. Privately however, the composer is reported to have said that the music was an emotional response to Stalin and the finale, especially, should be heard as a satire, the forced rejoicing of a slave under the suffering and forced allegiance that Stalin exacted.

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At the time, however, the official censors and leading critical thinkers including those in the West found it a convincing testament of loyalty to the Soviet leadership.

The performance will be 3 p.m. Feb. 19 at the State Theatre, 15 Livingston Ave. Tickets start at $35 and are available through http://www.statetheatrenj.org or by calling 732-246-7469.

Carlton Wilkinson, a composer, music professor, writer and editor, has a doctorate in music. Follow him on Twitter @CarltonTSC, email him at carlton.j.wilkinson@verizon.net or write him c/o Entertainment, Asbury Park Press, 3600 Highway 66, Neptune, NJ 07754-1551.

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