News Release: 2025-2026 Season Kickoff

NEWS RELEASE
Wichita Symphony Orchestra
September 10, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wichita Symphony Kicks Off 2025-2026 Season Exploring Music’s Power to Transform

Wichita, KS — The Wichita Symphony Orchestra’s 2025–2026 season opens with a dynamic weekend of music, conversation, and celebration from October 2–5, 2025. This opening weekend invites audiences to engage in intimate conversations and experience innovative and immersive performances.

The festivities begin on Thursday, October 2 with Crescendo Conversations: A Toast to the Season at Bubbles Champagne Bar. Guests are invited to raise a glass with Music Director Daniel Hege and Concertmaster Holly Mulcahy as they share their insights into the new season, offering a lively and welcoming prelude to the Symphony’s year ahead.

On Saturday, the Symphony presents Shifting Ground at Friends University’s Sebits Auditorium. Violinist Alexi Kenney, known for his imaginative and adventurous artistry, brings together works for solo violin and violin with electronics spanning Bach to the present day. The performance is enhanced by projection art created by media artist Xuan, resulting in an interdisciplinary presentation that merges sound and visual design in a striking concert experience.

The weekend culminates on Sunday at Century II Concert Hall with Symphonic Metamorphosis, the first Mainstage concert of the season. Daniel Hege leads the Symphony in a program that opens with Verdi’s dramatic La Forza del Destino Overture before featuring Alexi Kenney performing Korngold’s cinematic Violin Concerto, which encapsulates the warmth of Old Hollywood. The second half celebrates the transforming, shimmering colors of the orchestra through Theofanidis’s Rainbow Body and concluding with Hindemith’s bold Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes of Carl Maria von Weber.

Tickets for all performances and events are available now with no fees only at WichitaSymphony.org or by calling (316) 267-7658.

Season Kickoff at a Glance:

Thursday, October 2 from 5:00-7:00 PM
Crescendo Conversations: A Toast to the Season
Bubbles Champagne Bar
     General Admission Tickets, including champagne and charcuterie, $35

Saturday, October 4 at 7:30 PM
Shifting Ground
Featuring Alexi Kenney & Xuan
Friends University’s Sebits Auditorium
     General Admission Tickets, $50

Sunday, October 5 at 3:00 PM
Symphonic Metamorphosis
Featuring Alexi Kenney & the Wichita Symphony Orchestra
Century II Concert Hall
     Adult Tickets, $29-$85
     Student Tickets, $10

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES:
Contact: Nina Longhofer, Director of Marketing
Phone: (316) 267-5259, ext. 104
Email: nlonghofer@wso.org

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