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suisse120The Geneva-based Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (OSR), one of Switzerland's leading orchestras, kicks off the East Coast leg of its seven-city tour at Cornell University (note start time of 8:30pm) to perform its signature interpretations of early 20th-century French and Russian repertoire.

Conductor Charles Dutoit, born in Lausanne in the Suisse romande, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, leads the OSR in Debussy's Ibéria, Ravel's La valse and Daphnis et Chloé Suite No. 2 in separate programs, and Stravinsky's The Song of the Nightingale. Russian pianist Nikolaï Lugansky joins the OSR in performances of Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. With these programs, Mr. Dutoit pays tribute to the flagship repertoire and spirit of his mentor Ernest Ansermet, the founder and longstanding music director of the OSR.

Mr. Dutoit first appeared with the OSR as a guest conductor in 1959 and has regularly collaborated with them for more than five decades, both in concert and on recordings. Mr. Lugansky made his debut with OSR in 2003, and his most recent OSR appearance was on tour with then-Music Director Marek Janowski in 2012. Mr. Dutoit and Mr. Lugansky are frequent collaborators, especially as interpreters of Rachmaninoff's works.

The OSR last toured the US in October 2003. In its review, The New York Times said the OSR gave "a performance that showed [the ensemble] to be in superb shape.

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