Rabbi's Week in Review Blog

Fay and I attended the concert of our Kansas City Symphony this past weekend. It not only was the last concert of the season but it also was the final concert of artistic director/conductor Michael Stern. He leaves the symphony after a 19-year tenure.  

I, as I am sure many, have reflected on the changes and growth of our symphony over that period of time, beginning when the symphony was still playing in the old Lyric Opera space downtown.  Since then, the symphony has been comfortably ensconced in one of the great concert spaces in the world (OK, my opinion), and has seen growth of the musicians, the admirable expansion of concert programming including commissioning new adventuresome works, and the expansion of the symphony’s reach in the broader Kansas City community. As was stated at the concert, the Kansas City Symphony has grown from a regional symphony to one of national prominence.

With this transition, we look forward to welcoming the next artistic director/conductor, Matthias Pintscher. His tenure begins with the symphony’s European tour at the end of this summer.  There is great excitement at what he will bring to the symphony and the community.  

All of this made me think of how in Judaism we show gratitude for what has preceded us — giving honor to the people on whose shoulders we stand and, in our tradition of Oral Torah, always seeking out creative growth and change. We never lose sight of our Written Torah, the efficacy of Talmud and the great medieval commentators such as Rashi and Nachmanides. Yet we build on what we previously held sacred to find needed inclusive (and long overdue) space for women, queer Jews, Jews of color, and all those people and new Jewish ideas that have been previously marginalized. Seeking the new has not led us to dismiss where we came from.  

We salute and give thanks to Michael Stern for all he and the symphony have accomplished over the last 19 years. With excitement for what the future will bring, we welcome Matthias Pintscher.