Sam Wisman
Senior Producer - 91.9 Classical KC / Backup Announcer - KCUR 89.3Sam started listening to jazz on his local NPR affiliate when he was just 13 years old, and his life as a musician and radio guy continues to intertwine. Son of a merchant and a classical musician, he came to Kansas City to attend the UMKC Conservatory. During school, he shelved a lot of records and played “drop the needle” at The Marr Sound Archives, working with KCUR’s own Fish Fry host Chuck Haddix. After graduating Cum Laude with a degree in Percussion Performance, Sam became a versatile fixture in Kansas City’s music scene. He hosted Jazz Afternoon on 90.1 FM KKFI for over 10 years, and currently hosts Jazz Across America - Kansas City on San Diego's KSDS Jazz 88.3. Sam lives with his family in Roeland Park, and has yet to measure the volume of his kids with a decibel meter — but he has thought about it.
Email him at samwisman@classicalkc.org.
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This week we'll hear the Kansas City Symphony perform Franz Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 102 and Leonard Bernstein's "Serenade," a work composed for Isaac Stern, the legendary violinist and father of co-host Michael Stern. Also, we'll hear a recent performance of Béla Bartók's "Concerto for Orchestra."
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While many composers wrote multiple concertos for violin and piano, Samuel Barber wrote just one for each instrument. This week, in honor of the American composer's birthday, we'll hear those two concertos featuring violinist Philippe Quint and pianist Alessio Bax. Also, we'll hear "Scheherazade," the orchestral warhorse by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsokov, who was also born in the month of March.
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Kansas City's Midwest Chamber Ensemble has been presenting diverse concert programs and eclectic performance opportunities for over a decade. Brooke Knoll speaks with artistic director and violist Kathryn Hilger about the group's mission, recording projects and upcoming season. We'll hear music by Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky, Joan Tower and Robert Schumann.
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As a gathering place for all classical music lovers in Kansas City, Classical KC presents as many upcoming concert seasons by local groups as we can get our hands on.
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The globe-trotting, multi-disciplinary musician and composer Matthias Pintscher will take over the reigns of the Kansas City Symphony from Michael Stern this summer. Brooke Knoll speaks with him about his early life, how he got the gig in Kansas City and what his plans are for the orchestra. We'll hear his original compositions, plus music by Sergei Rachmaninoff.
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This week, co-hosts Michael Stern and Dan Margolies celebrate the birthday of the great French composer Maurice Ravel with works from throughout his career. The Kansas City Symphony's next Music Director, Matthias Pintscher, will lead the orchestra in two works, plus we'll hear Leon Fleisher in a performance of the "Left Hand Concerto," alongside the crowd-pleasing Bolero and the Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé.
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Celebrating 25 years as one of Ireland's most acclaimed musical ambassadors, the Irish Tenors are set to perform in Kansas City on March 6. Christy L'Esperance speaks with all three about their early inspirations, Irish culture in America and what makes their performances unique.
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Born in Prairie Village, tenor Ben Bliss has a very busy international performing career, including performances at the Metropolitan Opera and the great opera houses of Europe. He will be starring in the Lyric Opera of Kansas City's upcoming production of "Romeo et Juliette." Brooke Knoll speaks with Bliss about his journey from Kansas to the great concert halls of the world, meeting his Juliet and what's on the horizon for him.
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This week, learn the full story behind Gioachino Rossini's "William Tell" Overture. Plus, we'll hear two towering musical expressions of nature with Robert Schumann's Symphony No. 1 and Richard Strauss' Alpine Symphony. Co-hosts Michael Stern and Dan Margolies delve into each composer's frame of mind and what it is required of the orchestra to perform each work.
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Nearly two-hundred years after a twenty year old Frédéric Chopin composed his first piano concerto, the work still delights. This week, we'll hear rising piano star George Li perform the piece, plus the eminent violinist Gil Shaham performs Alban Berg's melancholy concerto. We'll also hear the Kansas City Symphony in a recent performance of Jean Sibelius' swan-inspired Symphony No. 5.