“[Clara] signals my gratitude to all the women who, in their time, challenged the society they were raised in by manifesting their artistic oeuvre,” says composer Ortiz of her tribute to Clara Schumann, which opens this program. Violinist Nancy Zhou takes center stage for Clara Schumann’s Three Romances, which The Times (London) referred to as "Lush and poignant, they make one regret that Clara's career as a composer became subordinate to her husband's." Clara dedicated her trio of Romances to violinist Joseph Joaquim; here Zhou performs Joachim’s challenging and expressive Variations for Violin and Orchestra. “Trumpets and drums have been sounding in my mind for quite a while now; I have no idea what will come of it,” wrote Robert Schumann as he began his grand Second Symphony; he struggled against illness and depression to complete it, but eventually added a boisterous finale “in which I am myself again.”