The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra played Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man;” Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with PSO Concertmaster David McCarroll as soloist, and the Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 at Heinz Hall the weekend of December 5th, 2025. WQED-FM was there to broadcast the concert on Sunday December 7th live.
During intermission, WQED-FM’s Jim Cunningham spoke with PSO Music Director Manfred Honeck, who spoke about the rave reviews of the orchestra’s concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City earlier in the week and his plans for the holidays. Jim also spoke with soloist and PSO Concertmaster David McCarroll about the Beethoven violin concerto, and the Bach encore he played. Jim was then joined by Pittsburgh Symphony Vice-President of Artistic Planning Mary Persin with a recap of the New York City trip, and what people can look forward to with the Pittsburgh Symphony during the rest of the December.
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra played Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man;” Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with PSO Concertmaster David McCarroll as soloist, and the Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 at Heinz Hall the weekend of December 5th, 2025. WQED-FM was there to broadcast the concert on Sunday December 7th live.
Before the concert, WQED-FM’s Jim Cunningham spoke with PSO violist Tatjana Mead Chamis and PSO Violinist Lorien Benet Hart about the recent trip to New York City, and what to expect from this afternoon’s concert.
Violin prodigy Himari makes her debut with the Pittsburgh Symphony on November 28th with Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1. She joined Jim Cunningham to talk about the Bruch, her first EP with Decca Records, and playing with the Berlin Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Himari began playing the violin at the age of three and by the age of six, was already performing with professional orchestras. In 2022, she became the youngest student admitted to the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she now studies under the renowned violinist Ida Kavafian.
Houston Symphony Music Director Juraj Valcuha returns to conduct the Richard Strauss “Ein Heldenleben,” A hero’s Life, which reveals the autobiography of the composer complete with his thoughts on music critics but does it end with a triumph? Not exactly. It is a giant piece and 45 minutes of delightful music. Maestro Valcuha tells Jim Cunningham in his dressing room after rehearsal on Thursday evening that he has already given the world premiere of the “Liberty Bell” by Julia Wolfe, co-commissioned with Pittsburgh and Houston. The composer will take a bow on stage this weekend. She uses lots of bells in the augmented percussion section.
Juraj Valcuha has renewed his Houston contract through 2027 and he is still getting to know the city. Rodeo is on the plan for next year and after leaving Pittsburgh, he’ll conduct “A Hero’s Life” at Jones Hall at Thanksgiving. He is just back from conducting the Debussy opera “Pelléas and Melisande” in Switzerland for one month working with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande – famous for hundreds of recordings with Ernest Ansermet. He’s a nature lover and he hopes he can enjoy the great outdoors a bit with many dates on his calendar. Pittsburgh is a favorite stop with his grandfather having lived here. He’s visited Grandads’ final resting place in Pittsburgh and looks forward to more concerts.
Just as he left the stage Thursday afternoon at Heinz Hall, Pablo Fernandez talked with Jim Cunningham about his Saint-Saens Cello Concerto No. 1 with Juraj Valcuha and the Pittsburgh Symphony. They’ve worked together with great success in Paris, he loves working with the Pittsburgh, and remembers well his debut with John Williams in December of 2023. He’s been playing the Saint-Saens since he was very young and of course he plays “The Swan” from the Carnival of the Animals as an encore often. He’s enjoying this trip and his wife is along for the journey this time. A new recording is on the way and life is good. He had to head off to rehearse for the Saturday Pittsburgh 360 concert where he plays two chamber music masterpieces with members of the orchestra and the audience on stage.
Pianist Helene Grimaud talks with Jim Cunningham about her wide-ranging tour with the Gershwin Piano Concerto marking its 100th anniversary. She recorded it live with David Zinman two decades ago and is delighted to return to it in Pittsburgh, Houston, Washington DC and opening the new era in Cincinnati with Christian Macelaru. She’s recently driven across the country from her California home to return to a place in Westchester, New York. A new recording is on the way. She has loved her many concerts with Pittsburgh including tour programs where she brought along her own tuner and Steinway. In Europe the distances are not too far, so hiring the truck and piano mover is more practical than in the States. In Pittsburgh, she is delighted to play the 24 year old concert grand while the new instrument is smoothing out its freshness.
Domingo Hindoyan makes his Heinz Hall debut with the Pittsburgh Symphony on November 7th and 9th leading “Alegria” by Roberto Sierra, the Gershwin Piano Concerto in F with Helene Grimaud as soloist and the Cesar Franck D minor Symphony. Maestro Hindoyan talks about his family growing up in Venezuela and playing the violin in the youth orchestra which is part of the highly successful training program El Systema. He discusses his new post at LA Opera, his music making in England and much more in this conversation with Jim Cunningham in the conductor’s dressing room recorded on Thursday November 6 , 2025.
She loves being the champion of the new in classical music. Leila Josefowicz, violinist with an Avery Fisher Career Prize and a Macarthur Genius Award, hasn’t found being anointed brainy to be a detriment to her social life or connecting with listeners. She joins Dalia Stasevska for the new Saturday Sessions concert on Saturday October 18, 2025 at Heinz Hall and Friday and Sunday for the Stravinsky Violin Concerto. The Stravinsky requires full concentration with it’s tricky rhythms and furious storms of notes complete with a chord considered briefly unplayable. Drinking Earl Grey tea and wearing a Steelers sweater in the conductor’s dressing room, she spoke with Jim Cunningham about her friendship with composer John Adams, recent recordings, and what is needed to bring off music of our time.
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Associate Conductor Jacob Joyce joined Jim Cunningham on the QED Morning Show to discuss the Orchestra’s first Saturday Session of the season. These concerts bring you iconic classical repertoire in a more guided, approachable way. Jacob hosts from the stage, sharing insights and stories as the music comes to life. Jacob explained what people can expect at this Saturday’s session which includes Caroline Shaw’s “The Observatory” and Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto.
Leaving on a jet plane finds Dalia Stasevska wearing a Metallica t shirt but arriving at Heinz Hall for her Pittsburgh Symphony debut without her luggage. She was projecting teen spirit during this conversation with Jim Cunningham in the guest conductor’s dressing room – after all, her husband plays in a metal band. Metallica worked with the Berlin Philharmonic and both the Symphony Orchestra and metal bands make a mighty roar.
She described her efforts for the city of Kiev and Ukraine, the country of her birth, before moving to Finland where she learned music in a distinguished tradition. Now she leads the Lahti Orchestra in Finland and the BBC Symphony Orchestra in London. She’s opened and closed the Last Night of the Proms and has a career on the trajectory of a rocket.
Dalia explained that her parents are artists, hippies and named her for the flower the Dahlia. She loves the music of Caroline Shaw which she will dig into this weekend in “The Observatory” along with Sibelius Sixth and his greatest hit Finlandia. Finlandia always touches her heart as does the playing of Leila Josefowicz who has Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto in the concerts October 17th and 19th with the special Saturday Sessions event on the 18th where Jacob Joyce joins Maestra to break it down for the audience.
Francesco Piemontesi returns to Heinz Hall to perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 with Robin Ticciati conducting the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He spoke with WQED-FM’s Jim Cunningham about the piece, working with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, what he has upcoming in his performance schedule and much more.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Music Critic Jeremy Reynolds stopped by our broadcast location to talk to Jim Cunningham about his immediate post-concert thoughts on the season opening concert by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.