St. Louis Symphony - Slatkin and Ax: Hope and Humanity

Published October 20, 2025 at 9:51 AM CDT

Conductor Laureate of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin, following an October 2025 performance in Powell Hall.

SLSO Conductor Laureate Leonard Slatkin, leads the orchestra in Elgar’s majestic First Symphony and the U.S. premiere of his own composition. Emanuel Ax, Slatkin’s dear friend and one of the most accomplished pianists of our time, takes the solo spotlight for Mozart’s adventurous Piano Concerto No. 25, a masterpiece described by Ax as pure magic.

An agreement with the St. Louis Symphony allows us to share audio for this program up to two weeks after the program's original air date. You can find more episodes here.

Host

Rod Milam
St. Louis Public Radio

Commentator

Lauren Eldridge Stewart
Assistant Professor of Music at Washington University

Conductor

Leonard Slatkin

Pianist Emanuel Ax following an October 2025 performance with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra

Program

Leonard Slatkin’s Schubertiade: An Orchestral Fantasy

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25
Emanuel Ax, piano

(Encore) Frédéric Chopin's Nocturne in F minor, Op. 55 No. 1
Emanuel Ax, piano

Edward Elgar’s Symphony No. 1

These broadcasts are produced by St. Louis Public Radio and made possible in partnership with St. Louis Public Radio and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.