Utah Arts Review

Conductor Tianyi Lu made an auspicious Abravanel Hall debut Friday night, leading the Utah Symphony and Chorus in a luminous account of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana.

The German composer’s large scale cantata is a work of primal, visceral energy, unbridled emotional intensity and rhythmic drive.

Carmina Burana has appeared with some regularity on the symphony’s programs. And at Friday’s performance, Lu captured the breadth and scope of this hour-long work with her uncompromising attention to tempo, rapid meter shifts and dynamics, as well as striking the right balance between the chorus and orchestra. 

As always, the Utah Symphony Chorus gave an outstanding performance. Their articulation, delivery and intonation were spot-on, and they brought depth and finely crafted expression to their singing. They underscored the bold lines of the opening “O Fortuna” with dramatic flair, while also bringing softly inflected lyricism to the more lighthearted sections of “Uf dem Anger.” 

Joining the orchestra and chorus as soloists were soprano Jeni Houser, countertenor Ryan Belongie (replacing the originally scheduled tenor, Brian Stucki) and baritone Ricardo José Rivera.All three were making their Utah Symphony debuts.

Of the three, the baritone has the most solo material, and hearing Rivera was an absolute joy. His rich, darkly hued voice resonated throughout the hall and contrasted wonderfully with the chorus. His opening aria, “Omnia sol temperat,” was delivered with fluid expressiveness; and that quality carried over into the section “Cour d’amours,” where he sang of the multi-faceted joys of love. 

Rivera also has acting chops, and elicited audience laughter with his humorous rendition of a drunken abbot in the section “In Taberna.” 

Rivera and Houser were well paired in their duets in “Cour d’amours.” Houser possesses a clear, crystalline soprano that contrasted well with Rivera’s warm baritone. They were charming in “Tempus est iocundum,” teasing and flirting with each other. And in the following “Dulcissime,” Houser brought out the lyrical quality of her voice to full advantage in this disarmingly delightful aria, in which she finally decides to give in to Rivera’s advances.

Getting the biggest laughs from the audience was Belongie, who mimed and mimicked his way through his only aria, “Olim lacus colueram,” singing from the point of view of a swan being roasted over an open fire. Belongie sang with exaggerated expression that vividly captured the tortured agony of the swan. 

Also taking part in Carmina Burana are members of the Choristers of The Madeleine Choir School. On Friday, these young singers were an absolute pleasure. They sang their parts with pure, unadulterated tonal clarity and finely honed expressions. 

The first half of the concert consisted of two brief works, Debussy’s evocative Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune and Iman Habibi’s rhythmically restless and dramatic Zhiân, which he dedicated to the Iranian people fighting for human rights in their country.

The Debussy was notable for principal flute Mercedes Smith’s supple and sensuous solo playing. Conductor Lu sculpted beautifully crafted phrasing and coaxed subtle lyricism from the ensemble that mirrored Smith’s captivating account.

In the Iranian-born Habibi’s piece, written in 2023, Lu’s lucid direction brought a seamless flow to the strident and at times cacophonous sounds and ever-changing textures of the music. She also brought clearly defined articulation to the interplay among the sections of the orchestra.   

The program will be repeated 7:30 p.m. Saturday. utahsymphony.org