Miles down a gravel road marked “X”, singing, laughing and music filled a tallgrass prairie pasture Saturday afternoon as the Symphony in the Flint Hills hosted its “Grande Finale” Saturday, hosting people for an afternoon of music, educational talks and nature walks and culminating with concert by the Kansas City Symphony, featuring Clearwater native Logan Mize. By evening, almost 8,000 people were all standing in front of the bandshell as the magic of the music and the Kansas sunset washed over them.
“Well, it’s kind of bittersweet,” two-year volunteer Holly Britain said. “I think it’s been a great run, but I think, like everything, it’s time to reevaluate. And see how you can better promote the surroundings in the area… I think it was great while it lasted, but I think it’s good to go out on top.”
Kelly Tastove, the operations manager for the Symphony of the Flint Hill said the beauty and exclusivity of the rolling pastures is what kept the event successful for the two-decades it has been running.
“The opportunity to come out here on privately-owned land doesn’t happen unless you’re invited out to it, and then to come out here and see the views that you see,” Tastove said.
“How do you beat that?” 
Tastove has worked for the nonprofit organization since its beginning, and she said there was not just one reason for this being the final summer for this event, but that organizers all decided it had just “run its course.” The organization is considering what it can do next to continue its mission of raising awareness and appreciation for the tallgrass prairie and the Flint Hills.
For some attendees, this year’s event was their first. Some were finally drawn out of their hesitancies by the threat of the Symphonony’s last performance in the Flint Hills. Others had never heard about the event. Amanda Carney made the journey from Kansas City out to the prairie after hearing about it on TikTok from a person who attended last year. Carney said it was the first time she had heard of the event and decided she wanted to go.
“I’m really glad that I heard about it before it sold out or anything, before it passed,” Carney said. “Because once I heard about that, I have to go to that. So I’m glad that I got to come to the last one.”
OTHERS HAVE made Symphony in the Flint Hills an annual tradition. Good friends Susan Lowman and Susan Hocker, both of Overland Park, attended the event three years ago, and haven’t stopped since.
“We just decided it was time. We were aware that it happened. It happened every year, and we just decided to make it a priority,” Hocker said.
Hocker said she was sad to see the symphony go, but would be willing to drive out to the Flint Hills in the future, just for the ability to be out on the prairie, if Symphony in the Flint Hills made that available to the public in the future.
“I just like being out in the wide open,” Hocker said. “They wouldn’t have to do anything, and I would still come. If they just set a date and said, come on out and enjoy our cows and our sunsets.”
Priscilla McPheeters, Lawrence, has been attending for more than a decade. McPheeters’ husband has been helping photograph the event. McPheeters said they believe in the preservation of the Flints Hills, and they always enjoy the symphony, though she does have some favorite moments throughout the years.
“Always the cattle, the running of the cattle,” McPheeters said. “And just the sweetness of the children every year is perfect, but some years, one year they had a gentleman come from Australia, famous folk singer and I’ll never forget that.”
McPheeters said she wouldn’t want anything to change about the Symphony in the Flints Hills — almost anything.
“Just love the tents, love the environment, the people — there’s nothing about it that I would change except that I wish everyone could experience it,” McPheeters said.
