Whether you’re fulfilling a New Year’s resolution to more fully engage with the arts in 2024 or simply trying to shake off the bleak midwinter blues, live music is almost always a fulfilling pursuit.
Knowing where to begin, however, can be challenging. We’re here to help with our monthly concert guide. As usual, our recommendations range from high-brow art music to raucous rock and roll.
The homegrown opera star Joyce DiDonato’s concerts with the Kansas City Symphony open our picks, followed up with the luminescent pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason, and WindSync, one of America’s leading chamber ensembles. They all make the month brighter for classical music enthusiasts.
Rock fans will be treated to performances by the storied troubadour Elvis Costello, a band led by Alabama native Jason Isbell and Kansas City’s beloved annual tribute to David Bowie.
A pair of ensembles from New York City, the Hot Sardines and the superlative party band Too Many Zooz, will heat up the Folly Theater and recordBar. A showcase by pop upstart Lyn Lapid and the praise-and-worship celebration Winter Jam round out our suggestions for kicking off a happy new year filled with rewarding music.
Joyce DiDonato: January 12-14
- When: 8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 12; 8 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 13; and 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 14
- Where: Helzberg Hall, 1601 Broadway Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64108
- Tickets: Starting at $39
Michael Stern, music director and conductor of The Kansas City Symphony, characterizes Joyce DiDonato as “one of the preeminent mezzo-sopranos of our time” ahead of the star’s forthcoming appearance with the Symphony at Helzberg Hall.
DiDonato became an international sensation after growing up in the Kansas City area. With an imagination no less extraordinary than her voice, DiDonato continues to expand the possibilities of operatic music.
The hometown hero will apply her instrument to classic works by Charles Ives and Gustav Mahler, as well as to Joel Thompson’s recent composition “The Places We Leave.”
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit: January 18
- When: 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 18
- Where: Liberty Hall, 644 Massachusetts St., Lawrence, Kansas 66044
- Tickets: Starting at $71
The entertainment lineups at summer festivals are often the musical equivalent of buffet restaurants. Sampling a wide variety of flavors can be gratifying, but perfect main courses aren’t to be expected.
And though Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit were excellent as the top-billed act at the Boulevardia festival in Kansas City last summer, disruptive revelers and a condensed setlist disappointed some Isbell loyalists.
Neither limitation should be an issue at the sold-out Liberty Hall concert. Passionate aficionados will thrill to modern day Isbell classics like “Cover Me Up” without any distractions. It’s sure to be a lengthy night of literate root-rock.
Lyn Lapid: January 19
- When: 8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 19
- Where: recordBar, 1520 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64108
- Tickets: $22
Lyn Lapid creates the sort of frothy pop that has propelled peers including Olivia Rodrigo to stardom. The 21-year-old Filipino American songwriter is on the precipice of similar fame.
The giddy “poster boy” and the wistful “do u really?” reflect Lapid’s commercial potential. She’s signed to Republic Records, the label that’s also home to blockbuster stars like Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande.
Having refined her sound and honed her style during several years as an increasingly prominent YouTube personality, Lapid should thrive onstage at recordBar.
Winter Jam: January 21
- When: 7 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 21
- Where: T-Mobile Center, 1407 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64106
- Tickets: $15 at the door
Evangelical tent revivals aren’t an antiquated aspect of America’s past. The old-fashioned Bible-based gatherings have made a successful transition into new-fangled arenas in the form of the annual Winter Jam tour.
A fast-paced mix of preaching, fundraising, and music, Winter Jam events in Kansas City are attended by youth groups from hundreds of area churches and individuals seeking spiritual solace.
Lecrae devotees will also squeeze into the T-Mobile Center. The Texas rapper is the conscience of the contemporary Christian music community. Lecrae calls out religious and social hypocrisy on songs like “Still in America.” Crowder and Katy Nichole are also part of Winter Jam’s expansive lineup.
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra: January 23
- When: 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 23
- Where: Helzberg Hall, 1601 Broadway Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64108
- Tickets: Starting at $73
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performed on the 1981 K-Tel novelty smash “Hooked on Classics” and on the posthumous Elvis Presley album “If I Can Dream.” The storied institution is unapologetic about its crossover strategies.
The Orchestra proclaims it is “equally at home recording video game, film and television soundtracks and working with pop stars, as it is touring the world performing the great symphonic repertoire.”
The latter pursuit will be exhibited in a concert presented by the Harriman-Jewell Series. Vasily Petrenko will conduct the Orchestra and star British pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason in works by Claude Debussy, Sergei Prokofiev and Sergei Rachmaninoff.
Too Many Zooz: January 23
- When: 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 23
- Where: recordBar, 1520 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64108
- Tickets: $23
Making an impression on the bustling streets of New York City isn’t easy, yet Too Many Zooz gained a following by busking on sidewalks and in subway stations.
Frenetic, fun-loving, and internet-savvy, the trio adds sprightly pop and infectious electronic dance music to its foundation in the New Orleans brass band tradition.
Too Many Zooz selections, such as a charming cover of Miley Cyrus’s recent hit “Flowers” and a delightful arrangement of the Gloria Gaynor anthem “I Will Survive,” are capable of inciting uncaged parties. Cloudchord opens the show.
The Band That Fell to Earth: January 25-27
- When: 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 25; 8:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 26; and 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 27
- Where: recordBar, 1520 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64108
- Tickets: $50 on Thursday, and starting at $25 on Friday and Saturday
Kansas City audiences love cover bands, and few locally-staged tributes are more beloved than the annual homage to the late icon David Bowie.
More than a dozen of Kansas City’s most prominent musicians comprise The Band That Fell to Earth. Michelle Bacon on bass, Katy Guillen on guitar, vocalist Steve Tulipana and drummer Stephanie Williams are among the ensemble’s ringers.
The band invests interpretations of Bowie songs like “Golden Years” with admirable energy. This year’s tribute opens with an interpretation of Bowie’s 1971 album “Hunky Dory” on Thursday. Evenings of eclectic Bowie-mania follow on Friday and Saturday.
Elvis Costello & The Imposters: January 25
- When: 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 25
- Where: Uptown Theater, 3700 Broadway Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri 64111
- Tickets: Starting at $69
Elvis Costello’s gradual evolution from angry young man to genial elder statesman is documented in an astoundingly varied discography that includes 38 studio albums and six live recordings.
The 69-year-old has tackled punky new wave with “No Action,” classic country on “A Good Year for the Roses” and arty chamber music in “I Thought I'd Write to Juliet.” His collaborations with the Kansas City native Burt Bacharach are no less compelling — take “Toledo” for example.
Abetted by his veteran band the Imposters and guitar slinger Charlie Sexton, Costello is expected to offer an expansive career retrospective at the Uptown Theater.
The Hot Sardines: January 27
- When: 8 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 27
- Where: Folly Theater, 300 W. 12th St., Kansas City, Missouri 64105
- Tickets: Starting at $25
Gypsy jazz, the life-affirming music perfected by guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stéphane Grappelli in 1930s France, has never gone out of style. The form is now more popular than ever.
The Hot Sardines are leaders of the current gypsy jazz renaissance. The New York group’s renown is reflected by its multiple bookings in the Folly Jazz Series.
Nostalgic seniors and younger fans are smitten with the Hot Sardines’ ebullient renderings of vintage material like “When I Get Low I Get High” and “I Wanna Be Like You.”
WindSync: January 28
- When: 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 28
- Where: Polsky Theatre, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park, Kansas 66210
- Tickets: Starting at $25
WindSync celebrates its 15th anniversary in 2024. The quintet of flutist Garrett Hudson, oboist Emily Tsai, clarinetist Graeme Steele Johnson, bassoonist Kara LaMoure and French horn specialist Anni Hochhalter has big plans for the year.
The Houston ensemble is slated to release an album recorded at the hallowed Studio Two at Abbey Road Studios in London.
Known for unusual instrumentation and performing its forward-thinking repertoire without sheet music, WindSync opens 2024 with an extensive tour of the United States.
