The new music director, composer Matthias Pinscher, has lined up a debut visit to Europe for the Missouri orchestra.
The jaunt will take in dates at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, the Hamburg Elbsphilharmonie and Musikfest Berlin.
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Like….why? Vanity project.
Because they are first rate. Just listen before you write. Vanity comment.
Isn’t that why every orchestra goes on tour?
At least with a merrrrkin program – https://www.berlinerfestspiele.de/en/musikfest-berlin/programm/2024/kalender/kansas-city-symphony
That’s quite courageous given they are not even in the 3rd tier of American orchestras and are certainly not well known either, not even in their own country.
They are fabulous, as their recordings under Michael Stern on Reference clearly show. It hasn´t always to be the same 10 orchestras. Times change. You only have to listen.
It is 22nd by budget among U.S. and Canadian orchestras, and climbing, and has a world-class home.
Oh, and Pinscher is superb.
*Pintscher*
Not well known, but they are a very good orchestra. You regularly see people winning jobs in Big 5-ish orchestras whose previous job was in Kansas City.
Um, they ARE exactly in the third tier of American orchestras…
If you are basing your opinion strictly on finances, you are using a VERY poor scale. That’s ridiculous. Next thing you know, you’ll be wanting to run the Met.
3rd tier? They are a solid upper 2nd tier orchestra with a long legacy. Just over 40 years old after the old KC Philharmonic was disbanded and then reconstituted. They play in a world-class concert hall than Londoners can only weep with envy over. The orchestra plays brilliantly and if you don’t believe me, check out some of their superb recordings on the Reference Recordings label, including a knockout version of The Planets and a real rarity: an excellent Enigma Variations done with an American orchestra. Best of all, the orchestra is treasured by the community, is fiscally sound and unlike so many European orchestras doesn’t depend on government subsidies. Check them out.
You need to get out more.
You’d be shocked to realize how well 3rd tier American orchestras can actually play. There is no shortage of incredibly talented musicians who, for some reason, and often due to sheer luck as orchestral auditions results often are a form of lottery, do not make it into the top 5 orchestras. It is far from being a fair business. These musicians may end up in what some consider to be a “lesser” orchestra. However, these orchestras often play at a level closely rivalling top-level orchestras. Critics may be dumbfounded if subjected to a blind test of a recording or video, without knowing in advance which orchestra is actually playing. I’m sure they’ll have great success — Musikfest is a prestigious venue.
Do not confuse reputation with artistic excellence.
So well deserved. KC is playing at such a high level these days. Excited to see where Matthias can take them next!
Completely agree! Well said. I didn’t expect the Matthias choice, but it’s an inspired one. A meeting of two fantastic musical worlds and traditions. I’m stoked for their future!
They reached a fantastic level under Michael Stern´s longtime leadership.Matthias will get them further…And the tour is a fantastic sign of the trust between him and them already formed yet.Most people are posting stuff about music without listening before.
Kansas City is an excellent orchestra and deserves to be heard more. I think it is a little odd for an orchestra to tour with a music director before he’s started his first season. Especially given the amount of fundraising it will take to make this happen.
Vanity? Third rate? I couldn’t disagree more. They are truly an outstanding orchestra with not only phenomenal playing on the technical level, but also any number of brilliant individual soloist-level players in it who shine and share some really very special musicality as a group and when needed as individuals, and a general ability to create the kind of electricity/energy in a concert that will keep audiences – notably that includes audiences newer to orchestral music – coming back for more and more. Basically, an exemplary orchestra. It’s great that Europe will get w chance to hear them work their magic live.
No one is questioning the quality of the orchestra or the music director. I don’t doubt that they are excellent. The question is why would a moderate size orchestra want to raise/spend what I have to assume will be several hundred thousand dollars to play three concerts in Europe.
A tour to Europe with three (major) destinations lasting just one week at most is comparatively less expensive than the usual two-to-three week adventure by the remnants of the so-called “Big Five” US orchestras.
However, I think that continuing to make commercial audio recordings should be a far more important objective than another European tour after this one, other than perhaps a tour to Carnegie Hall after a few years into Matthias Pintscher’s tenure as music director.
One hopes that under Matthias Pintscher as its incoming music director the Kansas City Symphony will continue to release commercial audio recordings on the Reference Recordings label — or another label — with one album recorded for release per year/subscription season.
The last commercial release from Michael Stern’s tenure as music director is likely to be one later this year on the Reference Recordings label, with the Brahms-Schoenberg Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25, the Brahms 11 Chorale Preludes op. 122 orchestrated by Virgil Thomson, and the Brahms Intermezzo Opus 118 No. 2 “Black Swan” arranged by Bright Sheng.
It’s taken forever, for the Brahms recording to come out; it was recorded pre-Covid. I had read it was coming out last fall, but that did not happen.
Agreed, puzzling that they’ll play only three concerts. Props to them for programming almost entirely American music, though maybe they should play some of Pintscher’s music, too.
I’d imagine these concerts are invitation, especially Musikfest. So they may not really have to pay much.
This could have been a great way to showcase how good Kanz City Symphony is.. BUT, for their big inaugural European tour, they’re softballing it. Rhapsody in Blue, Copland Symphony 3, Rhapsody Espagnol.. and to play the Gershwin, that overrated flavor-of-the-month Conrad Tao. Raise your hand if you think he will monkey around with the Gershwin, doing some stupid improvisation or other “look at me” showoff type stuff.
Perhaps audiences will like to hear an American orchestra from Missouri playing corny American pops, but they certainly won’t take it very seriously.
Mind you, I do like Copland Symphony 3.. but let’s not kid ourselves. It’s a flawed work.
Don’t assume that the orchestra is on the hook for the cost of a tour. The fees charged to the venues and corporate sponsorships (some of them see this as a great advertising opportunity) can supply much of the funds.