Elaine Yao

Elaine Yao is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis. Formerly a PhD student permanently marooned on NJ Transit en route to the Met, she spent years playing Baroque violin badly enough to love it and well enough to know better. Her musical interests remain divided between the 17th century and the paroxysms of modernity.

For my next trick For my next trick

The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra under conductor Stéphane Denève plays up the schtick in a concert performance of The Magic Flute – and obscures Mozart’s magic in the process.

By February 24, 2026 at 9:00 AM
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To our glorious dead To our glorious dead

The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra offered a rending reading of Britten‘s massive War Requiem with an eclectic trio of soloists.

By November 11, 2025 at 10:00 AM
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