Utah Arts Review

Utah Symphony’s heart is in the highlands with Scottish-flavored program – Jan 07, 2023

Douglas Boyd conducted the Utah Symphony in music of Elgar, Bruch and Helen Grime Friday night at Abravanel Hall. Photo: Ian Mower

The Utah Symphony’s first concert of 2023 had a Scottish accent, as Glasgow-born conductor Douglas Boyd led the orchestra in Scottish composer Helen Grime’s Near Midnight and Max Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy (with another Glaswegian, principal harpist Louise Vickerman, in a prominent supporting role to concertmaster Madeline Adkins).

After reading a few lines from Week-night Service, the D. H. Lawrence poem from which Grime … Read More

Robertson hones new partnership with Utah Symphony in Russian-American program – Dec 10, 2022

David Robertson conducted the Utah Symphony in music of Adams, Prokofiev and Shostakovich Friday night at Abravanel Hall.

David Robertson returned Friday night to Salt Lake City to conduct the Utah Symphony for the third time in as many years. 

After his well-received debut in October 2020—and his triumphant return engagement in December 2021—there was speculation that Robertson would be named music director, succeeding Thierry Fischer. 

That speculation ended this week, when the orchestra announced that Robertson will be the Utah … Read More

Cellist Hornung upstages Beethoven’s Fifth with dark Shostakovich – Dec 05, 2022

Maximilian Hornung was the soloist in Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1 with the Utah Symphony Saturday night at Abravanel Hall.

Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony had top billing at the Utah Symphony this weekend. But, as rousing as the orchestra’s performance of that symphonic favorite was on Saturday night, arguably the best thing about it was that it got thousands of people through the doors of Abravanel Hall to hear Maximilian Hornung’s stunning performance of Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1.

It was clear … Read More

Hough returns to Utah Symphony with triumphant Rachmaninoff – Nov 12, 2022

Stephen Hough performed Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Utah Symphony Friday night at Abravanel Hall.

Just in time for the onset of winter temperatures in Salt Lake City, the Utah Symphony delivered a hearty and filling musical meal Friday night at Abravanel Hall.

The main course was Stephen Hough’s breathtaking performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, which demonstrated, once again, that the British pianist is one of the smartest and most equipped soloists currently working. 

The technical demands of “Rach 3” are … Read More

Morlot steps in to skillfully handle a challenging Utah Symphony program – Nov 05, 2022

Ludovic Morlot conducted the Utah Symphony in music of Ives, Salieri, Tchaikovsky and Augusta Read Thomas Friday night at Abravanel Hall.

Conductor Ludovic Morlot showed consummate skill, musicality, and versatility at the helm of the Utah Symphony Friday night at Abravanel Hall.

Filling in for music director Thierry Fischer, who cancelled due to an injury this week, Morlot acquitted himself brilliantly on the difficult and eclectic program Fischer had planned. 

The program included Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with Russian pianist Andrei Korobeinikov, … Read More

Guest artists create a storm in all-Russian program with Utah Symphony – Oct 22, 2022

Andrew Staupe performed Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with David Danzmayr conducting the Utah Symphony. Photo: Seth Ian

With a stunning all-Russian concert, the Utah Symphony welcomed the first guest conductor of its 2022-2023 season. 

Austrian-born conductor David Danzmayr, currently in his second season as music director of the Oregon Symphony, put his distinctive stamp on the orchestra, creating a spellbinding sound in his rendition of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5.

And pianist Andrew Staupe, who recently joined the University of Utah music faculty, turned … Read More

Utah Opera soars with Wagner’s “Flying Dutchman” – Oct 11, 2022

Michael Chioldi and Wendy Bryn Harmer star in The Flying Dutchman at Utah Opera. Photo: Dana Sohm

The Flying Dutchman is the one Wagner opera that can serve gracefully as a staple of regional opera companies.

That is partly due to its brevity. Dutchman clocks in at under three hours, which means it can be produced without paying overtime rates—a genuine issue with Wagner’s other works, most of which are over four hours long and require larger orchestras. 

The opera also gives audiences a … Read More

Conductor, violinist show versatility in Covid-revised Utah Symphony program – Sep 17, 2022

Alexandre Bloch conducted the Utah Symphony Friday night at Abravanel Hall. Photo: Marco Borggreve

The note on the Utah Symphony website stated ominously  “THIS PROGRAM HAS BEEN ALTERED DUE TO COVID CASES AND EXPOSURE IN THE ORCHESTRA.” 

In fact, the orchestra’s planned program of challenging 20th and 21st century music was scrapped entirely for an evening of music from the Romantic Period. On Monday, symphony musicians sitting near colleagues who tested positive for Covid were told to stay home this week, and the … Read More

Critic Picks for the 2022-23 season – Sep 11, 2022

George Stevens Jr’s “Thurgood” opens at the Utah Shakespeare Festival September 14.

Thurgood. Utah Shakespeare Festival. September 14–October 8.

The Utah Shakespeare Festival’s interim artistic director, Derek Charles Livingston, plays the title role—as well as several supporting roles—in George Stevens Jr.’s one-actor drama depicting the life of legendary civil rights attorney and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. Livingston joined the festival staff last year as director of new play development; this will be his Utah stage debut. bard.org (CRN)

Music of Tchaikovsky, Ives, Thomas … Read More