Gershwin’s rowdy Cuban Overture, a souvenir from his wild trip with friends to Havana, kick starts this concert celebrating the melting pot of American music. Howard Hanson’s haunting Second Symphony, written in 1930 for the Boston Symphony’s 50th anniversary, appears in the closing credits of the film “Alien.” While living in the U.S. in the 1890s, Dvorák's study of American folk melodies resulted in an affectionate tribute to this remarkable “New World.”

*contents borrowed from Kansas City Symphony official website - https://tickets.kcsymphony.org/events