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Celebrate the birthday of Sergei Prokofiev by listening to the Kansas City Symphony perform three of his works: the invigorating suite from "Love of Three Oranges," his third piano concerto and an epic cantata comprised of music from his score to the Sergei Eisenstein film "Alexander Nevsky." We'll also hear Beethoven's portentous tone poem "Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage."
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One of the brightest lights in conducting was lost when Seiji Ozawa passed away on February 6, 2024. His recorded legacy is large and we remember him through his exemplary recordings of music by Faure, Janacek, Ives, and Stravinsky.
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With the world premiere of "The Haberdasher Prince," a one act opera by Rosabella and Dina Gregory, the Lyric Opera of Kansas City hopes to inspire and bring new audiences of all ages to the art form. Classical KC's Christy L'Esperance speaks with the Lyric's director of learning, Neal Long, about the story and production.
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Violinist Joseph Genualdi, horn player Alberto Suarez and pianist Sean Chen have accomplished a lot individually. Now, they're joining forces as a chamber music trio. We'll get to know each of them, learn about their upcoming April 18 performance and hear their recordings of music by Gabriel Fauré, Alyssa Morris and more.
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This week, hosts Michael Stern and Dan Margolies explore a wonderful variety of works. We'll hear an organ concerto by Handel featuring Jan Kraybill, Adolphus Hailstork's 'Baroque Suite,' alongside works by Ferruccio Busoni and David Diamond. On top of all that great music, we'll hear a recent performance of Sergei Rachmaninoff's fourth piano concerto featuring pianist Conrad Tao.
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For over two centuries there have been arrangements of full symphonies for small instrumental ensembles. We’ll hear beloved symphonies by Brahms and Haydn in chamber music settings that are as compelling as they are charming.
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Originally from New York, award-winning pianist Michael Davidman has been honing his craft at Park University's International Center for Music. We'll get to know Michael and hear music by Franz Liszt, Frédéric Chopin, Arvo Pärt and Maurice Ravel. We'll also highlight his upcoming performance at "Musical Threads," an event at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art which is a collaboration between the Kemper, Park ICM and Classical KC.
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William Walton created music for film adaptations of Shakespeare plays and Hector Berlioz wrote one opera inspired by Shakespeare. We’ll hear music from each in today’s show.
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This week we'll hear Bach's Fantasia and Fugue in C minor as arranged by Edward Elgar. The rest of the program is Gustav Mahler's gargantuan Symphony No. 2, known as "The Resurrection." Mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor shares what excites and scares her about performing the work. And as always, co-hosts Michael Stern and Dan Margolies offer insightful background on each composer and composition.
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When you think about the guitar, your favorite rock band or a singer-songwriter might come to mind, but classical guitar rocks just as hard as its more mainstream counterparts. April is International Guitar Month: celebrate by learning more about Kansas City’s classical guitar scene.
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This upcoming weekend, the Kansas City Symphony will be performing an electric, dance-inducing piece of music by the Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera. Learn more about this piece of music that showcases the unique sounds of the orchestra and will get your toes tapping.
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Celebrate the 292nd birthday of Franz Joseph Haydn by hearing the Kansas City Symphony perform three of the prolific composer's works. We'll also hear Nikolai Rimsky-Korsokov's rousing "Russian Easter Festival Overture" and the first of Sergei Rachmaninoff's four genre-defining piano concertos.