Performances
A retooled Pacifica Quartet brings the same top artistry to Salt Lake City – Sep 19, 2019
The Pacifica Quartet performed Wednesday night, presented by the Chamber Music Society of Salt Lake City.
The Chamber Music Society of Salt Lake City opened its season Wednesday night in Libby Gardner Concert Hall with a welcome return visit by the Pacifica Quartet. The ensemble has been a frequent guest here over the years, and each time they’ve engaged their audience with their perceptive playing and well-chosen programs.
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the Pacifica has gone through personnel changes in recent years … Read More
Utah Symphony premiere proves bombastic but Ehnes scores with Bruch – May 18, 2019
James Ehnes performed Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor with the Utah Symphony Friday night at Abravanel Hall. Photo: Kathleen Sykes
Except for Max Bruch’s omnipresent Violin Concerto in G minor, Friday night’s’s Utah Symphony concert at Abravanel Hall celebrated a part of American history.
In addition to two works by Aaron Copland, Appalachian Spring and the suite from the ballet Billy the Kid, the program also features the Utah debut of Chinese-American composer Zhou Tian’s Transcend, written to commemorate … Read More
Utah Opera’s superb cast, colorful staging make for an entertaining “Magic Flute” – Mar 10, 2019
Zulimar López-Hernández (left) as Pamina and Celena Shafer as the Queen of the Night in Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” at Utah Opera. Photo: Dana Sohm
Mozart’s beloved The Magic Flute opened Saturday night presented by Utah Opera at the Capitol Theater. The opera, Mozart’s last, was premiered mere months before the composer’s death at 35.
Utah Opera’s lively and whimsical production makes it easy to understand why the work has had such staying power over more than two centuries. With … Read More
Jackiw brings individual illumination to Brahms concerto with Utah Symphony – Feb 23, 2019
Stefan Jackiw performed Brahms’ Violin Concerto with Mario Venzago and the Utah Symphony Friday night. Photo: Kathleen Sykes
The Utah Symphony presented a program of exclusively Romantic-era music Friday night at Abravanel Hall. The performance took place under the baton of Swiss guest conductor Mario Venzago, and featured soloist Stefan Jackiw performing the popular Brahms Violin Concerto.
Much of the evening’s music originated as works for the opera or theater including the opener, Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 2. Despite the … Read More
Women composers stand tall alongside old masters in NOVA Chamber program – Jan 21, 2019
“Chance Has Spoken” by composer Gity Razaz paired music with ballet Sunday at Gardner Hall.
Since its start in 1977 the NOVA Chamber Music Series has always been about presenting a wide range of works with a strong emphasis on new music. This season, under new music director Madeline Adkins, the focus is on women composers, and Sunday’s concert in Libby Gardner Concert Hall was NOVA at its best and most inclusive: Next to Beethoven and Elgar were works by the venerable American composer Joan Tower and the young … Read More
Utah Opera’s “The Little Prince” is captivating, well-cast magic for all ages – Jan 20, 2019
The Prince (Nitai Fluchel) and the Pilot (Jared Bybee) in “The Little Prince.” (Dana Sohm/Utah Opera)
The Little Prince made its Utah Opera debut to boisterous acclaim Saturday at the Capitol Theatre for what proved to be a superb adaptation of a literary classic. Composer Rachel Portman and librettist Nicholas Wright have taken the much-loved children’s novella by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and transformed it into an opera with universal appeal.
At first glance, the story of a young prince visiting Earth from a distant planet seems simple … Read More
Märkl, Utah Symphony warm up the winter chill with Spanish program – Dec 15, 2018
Jun Märkl conducted the Utah Symphony Friday night at Abravanel Hall.
Jun Märkl has been a frequent guest conductor of the Utah Symphony, appearing in Abravanel Hall almost every season since his first engagement in 2012.
Past appearances have seen him conducting weighty programs, But this week he was able to let his hair down, as it were, and indulge in populist Spanish-flavored pieces, including Emmanuel Chabrier’s España and Maurice Ravel’s ubiquitous Boléro.
All of these works … Read More
Fischer, Utah Symphony jazz it up with Gershwin, Ravel and Schubert – Sep 29, 2018
Thierry Fischer conducted the Utah Symphony Friday night at Abravanel Hall. Photo: Kathleen Sykes
If there truly is a popular classical music program, that doesn’t manage to beat old warhorses to death, then this weekend’s Utah Symphony offering surely is it.
It’s certainly difficult not to like a concert featuring works by George Gershwin, Maurice Ravel and Franz Schubert, especially when played as magnificently as they were by the orchestra under Thierry Fischer Friday night at Abravanel Hall. For … Read More
