A riot of colour: Gil Shaham joins Kansas City on tour in Amsterdam

Returning to the Concertgebouw following on from their inaugural European tour in 2024, Kansas City Symphony (KCS) under their Chief Conductor Matthias Pintscher were clearly on a high. A visible presence around Amsterdam in their distinctive turquoise t-shirts, and with many family members in tow, it seemed like the entire American population of the Netherlands plus admirers from neighbouring countries had turned out in support.

At just 44-years old, the KCS are the embodiment of the American Dream. Topping an US classical music league table with an amazing 340 performances last year alone, it is amazing to think that the orchestra is younger than many of the players on stage. All that outreach work in the community under their new German maestro, so important now in the minds of American audiences and board rooms alike, is surely paying off.

The programme

Creating an All-American sound

With so many cultural organisations around the world celebrating the 250^th anniversary of American Independence, the opportunity to hear American music played by an all-American orchestra is a treat. And while the original ballet score from Copland’s Appalachian Spring sought to depict wedding celebrations in a small 19^th century Pennsylvanian settlement, in Pintscher’s hands, all felt a little nearer to their Kansas City home.

Always with an eye for looming storms ahead, guarded woodwind colours and icy strings evoked both the stark beauty and harsh realities of life for early American settlers as depicted by novelist John Steinbeck.

Vast open spaces and gathering wastelands which ‘diminish man and reduce his blindless to the immensity of the universe’, as similarly chronicled in William Least Heat-Moon’s autobiographical travel guide Blue Highways, played with our sense of place.

Copland’s joyous Dance then, wherever you shall be thus became a just reward for those long journeys trudging over land and sea. Taking all the time in the world, closing harp flickers offered hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Gil Shaham plays Tchaikovsky

The surprise of the evening was Gil Shaham’s exuberance in Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto and his exquisite partnership with both Pintscher and the KCS. His warm, pure and very natural tone effortlessly filled the Concertgebouw. Flying around the violin fingerboard, he exuded an endearing innocence. Standing at times deep in the orchestral semi-circle, his chamber-like approach and animated interactions during the orchestral tutti’s felt like he had to keep reminding himself that yes, he was actually on the famous Concertgebouw stage. KCS’s sensitive accompaniment helped while the cadenza full of brilliante harmonics captivated.

After hurtling ferociously towards a final flourish, the whole hall burst into a prolonged applause with some audience members on their feet – not uncommon in The Netherlands, but very unusual after just the first movement – such was the love in the hall.

Moving on, introspection reigned as delicate horns cushioned the violin’s tender tones. A sea of colour set sail as Shaham variously teased phrase lengths, plunging forward and back before sashaying between clarinet and flute – his hushed murmurs testing the very limits of the Concertgebouw acoustics.

A riot of colour

Evocative alpine calls immediately gave way to hints of Hollywood glamour as Rachmaninov’s Third Symphony continued the colourful theme. Lyrical cellos, shadowy bass clarinet, light-footed brass and riotous percussion – including a Charlie Chaplinesque marimba – all built to an overwhelming balm. You can well understand why Kansas grasped the nettle in June by extending Pintscher’s contract until 2033/34. He is not only an exquisite storyteller, but an assured and reassuring presence on stage.

Sumptuous colours continued to swirl. A tingly celeste accompaniment like diamonds glistening under cinematic lights, foreboding brass and a contrabassoon so dark it melted in the mist, led to the finale’s veritable hoedown. Vibrant interjections sitting alongside soul-searching melancholy kept the momentum pushing forward. I wanted to hear more!