Aspiring musicians dream of the moment. That day when the years of endless practice, auditions and honing of craft finally result in the call saying, “You made it. You’re in the Symphony.” The Kansas City Symphony is considered one of our nation’s best, and we at By The Blade are proud to have received our own version of “the call”. For the 3rd consecutive year we are the Official Landscape Designer for the annual Symphony Designers’ Showhouse, raising money to support this music treasure.
The 45th Annual Symphony Designers Showhouse runs from April 26th through May 18th. This year’s home is south of the Country Club Plaza at 1246 W. 59th Street. Nearly two dozen of KC’s best interior designers were also carefully reviewed and selected to add their own notes to the score as together we present a symphony of color, innovation, style and new ideas for you to take home.
Showhouse Performance notes:
If you’ve had the privilege of attending a performance by the Kansas City Symphony, you know that the program usually contains notes about the works being performed. In that spirit, here are some notes about our Symphony of Color that we designed and installed at this year’s Showhouse.
Greeting you at the entrance are Blue Atlas Cedars. We like them for their artistic branching habits and they help define the architecture of the property and soften the stone facing of the home. They also draw your eye to the important part of the property – the front entrance. On a practical note, they’re very hardy and grow tall, not out or bushy – which makes them low maintenance
Thank you Nell Hills!
The Planters are from Nell Hills. We wanted something that would accentuate the front entrance and match the classical lines of the home. Mary Carol and her team were phenomenal to work with – as usual. The stone edging is a natural stone harvested from Oklahoma and was used to blend with stone structure of the home as it is of the same tone and texture.
There are almost too many plants on display to count, but expect to see a dramatic arrangement of Pansies, PJM Rhododendron, Azaleas, over 200 Liriope (a tall grass like plant), New Guinea Impatiens, Ornamental Spruce, Bacopa (a very classic plant/herb to compliment a classic home) and a variety of herbs.
Showhouse Opening Gala!
And if you make it during the opening days, you’ll see a spectacular display of 1500 tulips, especially planted and timed to explode with color like a dramatic overture for the 45th Annual Symphony Designers’ Showhouse. After the tulip overture, they’ll be replaced with Xenia’s, Impatiens, Vincas, Coleus, and others.
Composers’ Notes:
The home is very symmetrical in its structure so it was important to create a balance with the landscaping to compliment the existing symmetry. Due to the uniform color of the stone used on the home the landscaping we felt the landscaping needed to splash lots of colors similar to a fine painting. We wanted to blend new additions in with the classical existing horta-scape first, then bring your attention to the large stylized front door. We also wanted to draw you into and narrow your focus on the front door so when you entered the grand foyer your experience was enhanced.
It is such an honor to be chosen to create and perform a work like this. Especially with a classic home such as this, one is naturally moved thinking about all the generations of families that have lived there, their experiences, and how the property has matured over time. The strong Jacobethan style of architecture remains impressive in our contemporary age and beckoned us to ensure that there would be a grand entrance leading up to this grand home.
Support and Share
It is our sincere wish that you and your friends are able to visit the Showhouse this year. We hope that you enjoy everything about it, knowing that you are helping support a great Kansas City arts tradition. And then put on your reviewer’s hat and send us a review of our work. We’d love to hear from you!
Please share this post with your friends and we’ll see you all at the 45th Annual Symphony Designers’ Showhouse!
