An editorial in Monday’s (6/10) Kansas City Star reflects on the Kansas City Symphony’s “remarkable” 2012-13 season, which concluded on Sunday with a performance of Richard Strauss’s “Alpine” Symphony. “As Kansas City’s largest performing arts organization, the Symphony sets a tone and a standard for the area’s cultural life. All arts groups aim to balance the two most vital aspects of their existence—making creative achievements that stir our hearts and minds and building audiences to ensure the show can go on well into the future. In addition to near sellout concerts, the Symphony this season expanded its footprint with casual happy-hour events and a series of weeknight recitals that showcased the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts’ monumental Casavant organ…. Many first-time concertgoers have been discovering what the Symphony’s faithful audiences already know: The sounds in Helzberg Hall are exuberant and inspiring. At a time when orchestras across the country are struggling to stay alive, amid financial troubles and labor disputes, the Kansas City Symphony has been on a steady path to success. For those who have yet to participate in the experience, it’s time to tune in.”

Posted June 12, 2013