Step aside, Mahomes and Witt: There’s a third KC superstar in our midst | Opinion
Most Kansas Citians recognize the gift of our two young sports superstars. Patrick Mahomes has brought championships, glory and a dynasty to our humble cow town. Bobby Witt Jr., shows great promise to do the same with his relentlessly energetic and excellent two-way play at shortstop.
But what most Kansas Citians probably don’t know is that there is a third superstar in our midst. His name is Matthias Pintscher.
Last year, Matthias became the Kansas City Symphony’s music director and conductor. Following in the wake of Michael Stern’s long stewardship, Matthias has brought an excitement and drama to the symphony. He electrified me when I first saw him several weeks ago at a concert featuring the French masters.
His expressiveness as a conductor is charming. His passion for the music is obvious. The heart-rending emotion when he holds the silence at the end of a movement or a piece begs the audience to reflect for a small moment on the audacious performance of our symphony.
Our symphony: They’re men and women from all different walks of life. They excel at their craft, and their sole job is to share their love of music with us. Don’t even get me started on when Matthias dropped his conductor’s baton in the middle of Debussy’s “Nocturnes” that Saturday night (it was retrieved by a violinist)!
The single greatest thing I can say about Matthias is that you can see the joy and renewal he’s brought to the symphony on the faces of the musicians. They are smiling. They are attentive to his swells. They play more fervently and richly. Just like the Royals around Bobby, and just like the Chiefs around Patrick, Matthias has lifted their level of play.
In this era of our-cup-runneth-over, I wanted to write to my neighbors to tell you, in the immortal words of Yoda: “There is another.” Go check out Matthias Pintscher and the Kansas City Symphony.
Keith O’Connor is a Kansas City-area criminal defense attorney specializing in death penalty litigation.