Russian cellist Rostropovich dies at 80

TOKYO, Japan - Mstislav Rostropovich plays the cello at a hall in Tokyo in February, 2000, while Seiji Ozawa conducts. Rostropovich, a noted Azerbaijan-born cellist and conductor, also known as a pro-democracy activist, died in a Moscow hospital, Russia's Itar-Tass news agency said on April 27. He was 80.