There are places where a thrashing guitar can be melodic and soothing, where lasers and pyrotechnics go hand in hand with holiday music and where the marriage of metal and classical can bring generations together.
Or there is at least one place: anywhere that the Trans-Siberian Orchestra is playing.
This weekend, that’s in Buffalo.
TSO is playing at 3 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday at KeyBank Center as part of its annual holiday tour and as part of a holiday tradition in Western New York.
For one of those shows, a special guest from Buffalo will be watching from the crowd: Amherst native Bob Kinkel, a pianist, composer and producer who co-founded TSO in the mid-’90s and co-wrote the band’s greatest hits, including “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24” and “Wizards in Winter.”
Kinkel, who stepped back from active involvement with TSO in 2010, lives in New York City with his wife, Dina Fanai, with whom he is developing an immersive musical show, “Avalona,” as well as a series of his recording projects.
During a recent interview, he discussed the legacy and impact of TSO. These are excerpts from that conversation, edited for space and clarity:
What is it like this time of year when you turn on a radio or any holiday streaming playlist and hear your music?
Kinkel: At the beginning of the Christmas season, you start hearing your music played on the radio, and you go, ‘Oh, yay!’ It feels good, and people react to it, which is amazing. Then you go to the concert and see it live, with this amazing light show, and you hear the music and you see people singing along and they know every note. It’s just an amazing feeling.
When you think back to your years growing up here, as a kid who loved music and production, is there any part that dreamed one day of being part of a massive rock show?
Kinkel: Not specifically. I always enjoyed music,…
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