One of the most significant projects of Mieczyslaw Weinberg’s later years was his symphonic trilogy On the Threshold of War. Symphony No.17, which bears the dedication ‘In memory of the fallen in the Great Patriotic War’, is the largest-scale of the three and a probing work of considerable depth and unforgettable power. Symphonies Nos. 18 and 19 can be heard on Naxos 8573190 and 8572752. With its eloquent themes and ready climaxes, the Suite is one of Weinberg’s most intriguing scores to have survived the difficult early 1950s. This performance is thought to be both the first of the work and the first recording.