In many northern regions of Russia, it is said that winter never ends. The Siberian winds generate sub-zero temperatures, causing rivers and lakes to crackle and freeze. Delicate ice crystals fall from the endless white sky and dance alongside trees and shrubs. The days are short, and everyday life slows during the darkest months. But it is also a time of festivals and traditions, a time when people greet each other with warmth and kindness to escape the sting of the cold. Bells ring in this magical time in which many look forward to cosy get-togethers and festive markets, teeming with rosy-cheeked children holding spiced sugar cookies and hot chocolate. With Russian Winter, Yury Kunets captures this vignette, creating a melodious picture of familial togetherness."A great Russian heart needs great Russian symphonies." This is how Kunets describes his work himself. It is the Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Rachmaninoff, the German-Austrian greats such as Mozart, Bach and Beethoven, but also jazz legends such as Herbie Hancock Stevie Wonder and Al Jarreau, who shape his orchestral compositions and revive memories of nature and childhood. Little stories about human existence, always connected and surrounded by nature, are preserved throughout his compositions.