@ the Symphony

Pittsburgh favorite Emanuel Ax returns to play Mozart's Piano Concerto #22, which inspired Ax's email address. Ax gives an insider's view of the concerto, talks about his long relationship with the PSO, his recent activities, his interest in tennis and football, and about the trend of older people taking up the piano.

Guest pianist Lars Vogt talks about Mozart's least-played piano concerto, No. 16, which he performs with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck. Vogt, who resides in Berlin, talks about his work with Honeck and another of his favorite conductors, the Berlin Philharmonic's Simon Rattle.

Baritone Thomas Hampson joins the Pittsburgh Symphony conducted by Manfred Honeck in Brahms' beloved A German Requiem paired with Dvorak's seldom-heard Biblical songs. Hampson describes the similarity of approach by both composers and the interesting companions these two works make.

Slovak conductor Juraj Valcuha talks about the colorful pieces on his concerts at Heinz Hall, Ravel's Mother Goose Suite, Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances, and Steven Stucky's Spirit Voices featuring percussionist Evelyn Glennie.

Stage and opera director Sam Helfrich will help the PSO stage, yes, with costumes, sets. orchestra in the pit and all that, Handel's Messiah as you've never experienced it before. Helfrich staged Pittsburgh Opera's 2009 Eugene Onegin and has worked with Opera Boston, Glimmerglass and other opera companies.

Pianist and improviser extraordinaire Gabriela Montero returns to Heinz Hall in Prokofiev's Piano Concerto #3 with guest conductor Christoph König. She talks about the challenges of Prokofiev's music, the art of improvisation, and her own first concerto, titled "Ex Patria," written as a reaction against the leadership of Hugo Chavez in her native Venezuela. Gabriela also talks about meeting and then concertizing with her boyfriend, a singer.

German conductor Christoph König gives his first impressions on working with the PSO, and talks about Prokofiev's string writing, the art of improvisation, his work with orchestras in Luxembourg and Porto, his recordings, and early life in the opera house and growing up in the former East Germany.

Sir James Galway talks about Mozart's Flute Concerto #2, and why Mozart disliked the flute. He also talks about the little-known creator of the Fantasie Brillante on Themes from Bizet's Carmen. Sir James reminisces about his concerts with the PSO including a memorable visit to Moscow with Lorin Maazel, and talks about the writing of his memoir, The Man with the Golden Flute: Sir James, a Celtic Minstrel.

22-year-old Chinese violinist Xiang Yu makes his PSO debut in Prokofiev's Violin Concerto #2. He talks about Prokofiev, winning the 2010 Menuhin competition, and his journey from Inner Mongolia to Beijing to Boston, where he studies with Donald Weilerstein. Xiang Yu mentions his extramusical activities, such as swimming, and coaches Jim Cunningham in some basic Mandarin phrases.

In a busy downtown restaurant, Pittsburgh Symphony Pops music director Marvin Hamlisch talks with Jim Cunningham about his travels to Africa and Europe, how he's winning his personal "battle of the bulge," highlights of the 2011-2012 PSO Pops season, the new sound system in Heinz Hall, special Gershwin-related surprises this season, and the need for subscriptions to keep the pops going.