× The title of Music@Menlo’s 2016 festival season, Russian Reflections, captures a variety of perspectives on this season’s programming—including the ways in which Russian history is vividly reflected in its music, the parallels between Russian musical works and their Western European counterparts, and the compelling theme of self-reflection in Russian music, art, and literature. Through each disc of Music@Menlo LIVE’s 2016 edition, these and other perspectives cast Russia’s musical identity in sharp relief, while also revealing an essential character that transcends any cultural divide.