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We’ve just passed the official start of Spring, so we have a program of music inspired by the season. Some had literary inspirations, some are prayers for spring, and others a celebration of new life after winter. All capture the beauty of the season in vivid tone-painting.
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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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Composer Max Reger wrote that Bach’s music is “powerful and inexhaustible medicine.” This week we have JS Bach suites for orchestra, solo cello, and solo piano. They are masterfully performed and are indeed a tonic for our hectic lives.
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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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The musical form known as “serenade” goes back to the troubadours of old. Later composers used the term to describe multi-movement works for small ensemble or large orchestra. This week we have two gorgeous serenades: one for full orchestra by Max Reger and the other for strings by Sir Edward Elgar.
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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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A slate of superstars will appear in Kansas City this month, including Bad Bunny, Drake, Sleater-Kinney and Jenny Lewis. Easter Sunday features a performance by R&B evangelist Anthony Hamilton to end the month on a high note.