http://www.utahsymphony.org/press Press and news events regarding the Utah Symphony and Opera Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=139 The Utah Symphony Welcomes Maestro Christopher Seaman and Violinist Will Hagen
The evening will feature Elgar’s Second Symphony, Bruch’s First Violin Concerto and Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Christopher Seaman leads the Utah Symphony and 17-year old Utah native, Will Hagen, in Bruch’s Concerto No. 1 for Violin in G Minor. The program also includes Elgar’s Second Symphony in E-flat Major as well as Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, March 26 and Saturday, March 27 at 8:00 pm.  

The program opens with Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, which comes from the composer’s only “comic” opera, featuring themes associated with lovers. Next, Hagen joins the orchestra for Bruch’s First Violin Concerto featuring intense lyricism, dark passion and a romantic second movement. The evening concludes with Elgar’s Second Symphony, which was allegedly inspired by Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony. Elgar described the piece as “the passionate pilgrimage of a soul.”

Christopher Seaman is in his eleventh season as Music Director of the Rochester Philharmonic, where he has been credited for broadening the orchestra’s audience base and, in particular, for his creation of the lecture series “Symphony 101”, which recently won an ASCAP award. Appointed Artistic Advisor of the San Antonio Symphony, Mr. Seaman previously served a ten-year tenure as music director of the Naples Philharmonic in Florida, and prior to that as conductor-in-residence of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (1987-1998). Sought-after as a guest conductor throughout the world, Mr. Seaman has appeared with orchestras in North America, Israel, Eastern Europe, the Far East, Australia and New Zealand, as well as in his native Great Britain, where he has served as Principal Conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony and the Northern Sinfonia.

His recordings include performances with the Royal Philharmonic, the Philharmonia Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra of Britain. In 1990 he collaborated with Anne Akiko Meyers and the Royal Philharmonic for a recording of the Barber Violin Concerto and Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1. Recently, he has released a recording of works by Tchaikovsky with pianist Olga Kern, as well as a recording of works by Rachmaninov with Jon Nakamatsu, both for the Harmonia Mundi label. Both of these recordings were performed with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and received considerable critical acclaim.

After studying at King’s College, Cambridge, Mr. Seaman began his career as a member of the London Philharmonic. Within four years, he had moved in front of the podium as assistant conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony in Glasgow. He has since appeared exclusively as a conductor. In May 2009 he was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Musical Arts by the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY.

At just 17 years of age, Will Hagen is quickly emerging as one of the most talented violinists of his generation. A native of Utah, he began violin lessons at the age of four. Following initial studies with Natalie Reed and Deborah Moench, Will entered the studio of Robert Lipsett at the Colburn School of Performing Arts in Los Angeles. For the past six years, he has been traveling to Los Angeles each week for lessons, where he has also participated in master classes with artists such as Pinchas Zukerman and Joseph Silverstein. In 2008, he was awarded a grant from the Ahmanson Foundation for promising young artists.

Already a seasoned performer, Will first soloed with orchestra when he was nine years old and has since enjoyed numerous solo engagements with ensembles across the country. Recent and upcoming performances include his debuts with the Saint Louis Symphony, the Albany (New York) Symphony, an appearance with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra on NPR\'s From the Top, a return engagement with the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, and (following 6 prior performances) his subscription debut with the Utah Symphony.

In addition to his solo performances, Will has appeared at festivals including the Aspen Music Festival and the ENCORE School for Strings. This summer he returns to Aspen and will also attend the National Arts Centre’s Summer Music Institute with Pinchas Zukerman. Diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at an early age, Will has also been actively involved with fundraising concerts for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

The second of three sons, Will is a sophomore at East High School in Salt Lake City, where he plays for the varsity baseball team.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program         
Richard Wagner         Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Max Bruch                Concerto No. 1 in G Minor for Violin and Orchestra, op. 26
                                                          Vorspiel: Allegro moderato
                                                            Adagio
                                                            Finale: Allegro energico

INTERMISSION

Edward Elgar              Symphony No. 2 in E-flat Major, op. 63   
                                       Allegro vivace e nobilmente
                                       Larghetto
                                       Rondo
                                       Moderato e maestoso

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-10 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Thu, 18 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=138 Utah opera Presents Rossini’s The Italian girl in Algiers
Rossini’s hilarious opera features energetic melodies and comical characters

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Opera presents Rossini’s The Italian Girl in Algiers at Capitol Theatre on March 13, 15, 17 and 19 at 7:30 pm and March 21 at 2:00 pm. The Utah Symphony will accompany Utah Opera in each performance, conducted by Christopher Larkin (The Marriage of Figaro) and directed by Patrician Weinmann (Cinderella). The opera will be sung in Italian with English supertitles.

In Rossini’s opera of missing lovers, jealous wives, and meddling servants the audience will laugh from curtain up to curtain down. Bored with his current wife, Mustafà the ruler of Algiers seeks a more interesting Italian woman whom he finds in the recently shipwrecked Isabella. Looking for her missing lover (who happens to be Mustafà’s servant), Isabella doesn’t give in easily to the ruler’s advances (full synopsis below).

There will be one twenty minute intermission. Approximate final curtain: 10:20 pm for evening performances and 4:40 pm for the matinee.

A free Opera Preview Lecture will be presented by Lynn Jemison-Keisker (Associate Professor and Director of Opera Theatre for Utah State University) on Wednesday, March 10th at 7:00 pm in the 4th floor meeting room of the Salt Lake City Library.

There will also be a Questions and Answers session with Utah Opera Artistic Director, Christopher McBeth immediately following each performance in the Founders room on the mezzanine level at Capitol Theatre.

Tickets for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday performances are $15-$72.  Tickets for Monday and Wednesday performances are $13-$64.  Tickets can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall ticket office, the Capitol Theatre box office or by visiting www.utahopera.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should call (801) 533-NOTE (6683).  

The Italian Girl in Algiers
Composed by Giocchino Rossini
Libretto by Angelo Anelli
March 13, 15, 17, 19 | 7:30 PM
March 21 | 2 PM
Capitol Theatre
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Supertitles provided by Words for Music, and translated by Stephanie Sundine.
Premiere: La Scala, (Milan, Italy) 1808
Utah Opera: 1994

CAST  
Mustafa                                                                        Rod Nelman
Elvira                                                                            Anna Vikre
Zulma                                                                           Stina Eberhardt
Haly                                                                             Brent Turner
Lindoro                                                                        Brian Stucki
Isabella                                                                         Leah Wool
Taddeo                                                                        Daniel Belcher

ARTISTIC STAFF
Conductor                                                                    Christopher Larkin
Director                                                                        Patrician Weinmann
Choreographer                                                             Shelly Cordova
Assistant Dance Choreographer                                    Shaun Ricks
Set Designer                                                                 Paul Shortt
Costume Designer                                                        Susan Memmott-Allred
Lighting Designer                                                          Nicholas Cavallero
Wigs and Make-up Designer                                        Jennifer Lloyd
Chorus Master                                                             Susanne Sheston
Musical Preparation                                                      Carol Anderson, Jason Hardink
Stage Manager                                                             Rachel Henneberry
Assistant Stage Manager                                               Kat Slagell

 
Scenery provided courtesy of Indiana University Opera Theater.
Scenic Designer: Paul Shortt.

Synopsis
ACT I.
In Algiers, at the seaside palace of the ruler Mustafà, his wife, Elvira, complains that her husband no longer loves her; her attendants reply there is nothing she can do. Mustafà himself bursts in. Asserting he will not let women get the better of him, he sends Elvira away when she complains. Mustafà says he has tired of his wife and will give her to Lindoro, a young Italian at the court, to marry. Then he orders Haly, a captain in his service, to provide an Italian woman for himself-someone more interesting than the girls in his harem, all of whom bore him. Lindoro longs for his own sweetheart, Isabella, whom he lost when pirates captured him. Mustafà tells him he can have Elvira, insisting she posseses every virtue that Lindoro, in his attempt to escape Mustafà\'s connubial trap, has listed.

Elsewhere along the shore, a shipwreck is spotted in the distance, and Haly\'s pirates exult in the catch. Isabella arrives on shore, lamenting the cruelty of a fate that has interrupted her quest for her lost fiancé, Lindoro. Though in danger, she is confident of her skill in taming men. The pirates seize Taddeo, an aging admirer of Isabella\'s, and attempt to sell him into slavery, but he claims he is Isabella\'s uncle and cannot leave her. When the Turks learn that both captives are Italian, they rejoice in having found the new star for their leader\'s harem. Taddeo is aghast at the aplomb with which Isabella takes his news, but after a quarrel about his jealousy, they decide they had better face their predicament together.

Elvira\'s slave, Zulma, tries to reconcile Lindoro and her mistress to the fact that Mustafà has ordered them to marry. Mustafà promises Lindoro he may return to Italy -- if he will take Elvira. Seeing no other way, Lindoro accepts, making it clear he might not marry Elvira until after they reach Italy. Elvira, however, loves her husband and sees no advantage in aiding Lindoro\'s escape. When Haly announces the capture of an Italian woman, Mustafà gloats in anticipation of conquest, then leaves to meet her. Lindoro tries to tell Elvira she has no choice but to leave her heartless husband.

In the main hall of his palace, hailed by eunuchs as \"the scourge of women,\" Mustafà welcomes Isabella with ceremony. Aside, she remarks that he looks ridiculous and feels certain that she will be able to deal with him; he, on the other hand, finds her enchanting. As she seemingly throws herself on his mercy, the jealous Taddeo starts to make a scene and is saved only when she declares that he is her \"uncle.\" Elvira and Lindoro, about to leave for Italy, come to say good-bye to the bey, and Lindoro and Isabella are stunned to recognize each other. To prevent Lindoro\'s departure, Isabella insists that Mustafà cannot banish his wife, adding that Lindoro must stay as her own personal servant. Between the frustration of Mustafà\'s plans and the happy but confused excitement of the lovers, everyone\'s head reels.

ACT II.
Elvira and various members of the court are discussing how easily the Italian woman has cowed Mustafà, giving Elvira hope of regaining his love. When Mustafà enters, however, it is to declare he will visit Isabella in her room for coffee. She comes out of her room, upset because Lindoro apparently broke faith with her by agreeing to escape with Elvira. Lindoro appears and reassures her of his loyalty. Promising a scheme for their freedom, Isabella leaves him to his rapturous feelings. After he too leaves, Mustafà reappears, followed by attendants with the terrified Taddeo, who is to be honored as the bey\'s Kaimakan, or personal bodyguard, in exchange for helping secure Isabella\'s affections. Dressed in Turkish garb, he sees no choice but to accept the compulsory honor.

In her apartment, Isabella dons Turkish clothes herself and prepares for Mustafà\'s visit, telling Elvira that the way to keep her husband is to be more assertive. As she completes her toilette, Isabella, knowing she is overheard by Mustafà in the background, sings a half-mocking invocation to Venus to help conquer her victim. To make him impatient, she keeps him waiting, as her \"servant\" Lindoro acts as go-between. At length she presents herself to the bey, who introduces Taddeo as his Kaimakan. Mustafà sneezes -- a signal for Taddeo to leave-but Taddeo stays, and Isabella invites Elvira to stay for coffee, to Mustafà\'s displeasure. When Isabella insists that he treat his wife gently, Mustafà bursts out in annoyance, while the others wonder what to make of his fulminations.

Elsewhere in the palace, Haly predicts that his master is no match for an Italian woman. As Lindoro and Taddeo plan their escape, Taddeo says he is Isabella\'s true love. Lindoro is amused but realizes he needs Taddeo\'s help in dealing with Mustafà, who enters, still furious. Lindoro says Isabella actually cares very much for the bey and wants him to prove his worthiness by entering the Italian order of Pappataci. Believing this to be an honor, Mustafà asks what he has to do. Simple, says Lindoro: eat, drink, and sleep all you like, oblivious to anything around you. Aside, Haly and Zulma wonder what Isabella is up to.

In her apartment, Isabella readies a feast of initiation for the bey, exhorting her fellow Italians to be confident. Mustafà arrives, and Lindoro reminds him of the initiation procedure. After he is pronounced a Pappataci, food is brought in, and he is tested by Isabella and Lindoro, who pretend to make love while Taddeo reminds Mustafà to ignore them. A ship draws up in the background, and the lovers prepare to embark with other Italian captives, but Taddeo realizes that he too is being tricked and tries to rally Mustafà, who persists in keeping his vow of paying no attention. When Mustafà finally responds, the Italians have the situation under control and bid a courteous farewell. Mustafà, his lesson learned, takes Elvira back, and everyone sings the praises of the resourceful Italian woman.

BIOS
Rod Nelman, Mustafa
Bass-Baritone
Most Recently at Utah Opera: Ben in Regina
Recently:
La Cenerentola, Fort Worth Opera;
Das Reingold, Indianapolis Opera;
Of Mice and Men, Kentucky Opera
Upcoming:
Don Giovanni, Michigan Opera;
L\'Elisir d\'Amore, Fort Worth Opera;
Fidelio, Dayton Opera
 
Anna Vikre, Elvira
Soprano
Recently:
L\'Elisir d\'Amore, Orlando Opera;
Un Ballo in Maschera, Opera Santa Barbara;
Lucia di Lammermoor, Des Moines Metro Opera

Brent Reilly Turner, Haly
Baritone (Florida)
Current Utah Opera Resident Artist
Most Recently at Utah Opera, Carmen
Recently:
Macbeth, Utah Opera;
Messiah, Holiday Pops with Jerry!, Bernstein’s Mass, Utah Symphony
Upcoming:
Suor Angelica & Gianni Schicchi, Utah Opera;
Apprentice Artist, The Santa Fe Opera

Brian Stucki, Lindoro
Tenor (Utah)
Utah Opera Debut
Recently:
Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Opera Colorado, Opera Pacific, Mexican National Opera;
Les pêcheur de perles, Seattle Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City;
The fall of the house of Usher, Polish National Opera;
Haydn’s Creation, Utah Symphony, Boston Baroque
Upcoming:
Il barbiere di Siviglia, Arizona Opera;
La Cenerentola, Pacific Opera Victoria

Leah Wool, Isabella
Mezzo-Soprano (New York)
Most Recently at Utah Opera: A Midsummer Night\'s Dream
Recently:
The Consul, Glimmerglass Opera;
Amadigi, Boston Baroque;
Hansel and Gretel, Kentucky Opera;
Messiah, Utah Symphony
Upcoming:
Flora, Spoleto Festival USA;
Hansel and Gretel, Utah Opera

Patricia-Maria Weinmann, Stage Director
Most Recently at Utah Opera: Cenerentola
Recently:
Hansel and Gretel, New England Conservatory;
Barrio Boheme, Syracuse Opera;
Bon Appetit, Opera Providence
Upcoming:
Gianni Schicchi, Ash Lawn Opera Festival

Christopher Larkin, Conductor
Most Recently at Utah Opera, Le Nozze di Figaro
Recently:
The Turn of the Screw, Portland Opera;
La Boheme, Nashville Opera;
Angels in America, Fort Worth Opera
Upcoming:
Little Women, Utah Opera]]> Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=137 The Utah Symphony Presents Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 4 and Collects Donations for the Utah Food Bank
Non-perishable food items will be collected prior to each performance

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Klauspeter Seibel will lead Concertmaster Ralph Matson and the Utah Symphony in Mozart’s lyrical Fourth Violin Concerto on a program that also includes Bruckner’s Fifth Symphony. The performances will be held at Abravanel hall on Friday, March 5th and Saturday March 6th at 8:00 pm.

Before each concert, the Utah Symphony will accept donations for the Utah Food Bank as part of the second annual Orchestra’s Feeding America from 6:30 – 8:00 pm on the plaza of Abravanel Hall. Those who bring donations will be given a 20% discount coupon for selected future performances.

The evening’s performance opens as Concertmaster Ralph Matson takes center stage to join the orchestra for Mozart’s Concerto No. 4 for Violin in D Major, which includes qualities of the style galant (grace, elegance, charm and gentle sentiments), but also produces a more spacious, varied and thematically developed work than normally encountered in late-eighteenth-century music. The evening concludes with Bruckner’s breathtaking Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major featuring the Utah Symphony’s world-class brass section.  

Currently Principal Guest Conductor of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO), Klauspeter Seibel has been a major figure on the musical stages of both Europe and the United States. With an emphasis on late romantic and American repertoire, he conducts a vast number of contemporary works, in addition to the standard 18th and 19th century operatic and orchestral literature.  

His engagements for 2009 included concerts with the LPO in New Orleans, the Forth Worth and Florida Symphonies, his Paris debut at the Bastille Opera with Mahler’s 3rd Symphony in the celebrated choreography of John Neumeier, “Hommage aux Ballets Russes,” a new production with the Hamburg Ballet, among others.

Having spent the first part of his professional life with an extensive conducting career in Germany, Seibel was in his early forties when he accepted his first guest engagement in New York, and his pleasure in working with American orchestras has kept increasing ever since. Thus, for almost 20 years he has divided his time between both countries, holding long-term contracts with the Operas of Hamburg, Dresden, and Frankfurt on one side and with the LPO in New Orleans on the other, while guest conducting many other orchestras and opera companies around the world. From 1995 to 2005, he served as Music Director for the LPO.

Ralph Matson was appointed the Utah Symphony Concertmaster in 1985. He began his violin studies in Detroit with Emily Mutter Austin. Mr. Matson received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale College and a master’s degree from the Yale School of Music. His principal teachers were Joseph Silverstein and Steven Staryk. He was a member of the Cleveland Orchestra, and prior to his Utah Symphony appointment, was Assistant Concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra.

Mr. Matson’s solo appearances with the Minnesota Orchestra and the Utah Symphony include collaborations with Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, Leonard Slatkin, Sir Neville Marriner, Eiji Oue, Joseph Silverstein, Keith Lockhart and Pavel Kogan. Since 1996, he has participated in the Grand Teton Music Festival where he is Concertmaster of the Festival Orchestra.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart    Concerto No. 4 in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, K. 218
                                                   Allegro
                                                   Andante cantabile
                                                   Rondeau:  Andante grazioso - Allegro ma non troppo

INTERMISSION

Anton Bruckner         Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major
                                    Adagio – Allegro - Langsamer
                                    Adagio- Sehr langsam
                                    Scherzo: Molto vivace - Trio
                                     Finale: Adagio - Allegro

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-10 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.

]]> Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=136 The Utah Symphony Hosts Van Cliburn Medalist Under the Direction of Music Director Emeritus Keith Lockhart
Utah Symphony welcomes Van Cliburn Medalist Yeol Eum Son to perform under the direction of Maestro Keith Lockhart, Music Director Emeritus of the Utah Symphony

SALT LAKE CITY— The Utah Symphony celebrates excellence in the arts as Music Director Emeritus Keith Lockhart returns to lead the orchestra and Van Cliburn Competition medalist Yeol Eum Son in Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto. The program also includes Stravinsky’s Symphonies of Wind Instruments and Symphony in C. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, February 26th and Saturday, February 27th at 8 p.m.

The program will begin with Stravinsky’s Symphonies of Wind Instruments, which was described by the composer as “an austere ritual which is unfolded in terms of short litanies between different groups of homogeneous instruments.” Next, the orchestra will perform a second piece by Stravinsky, his Symphony in C, which features unique and varying rhythmic patterns, a sense of idyllic charm and a finale filled with the mournful sounds of bassoons, horns and trombones. The evening will conclude as Yeol Eum Son joins the orchestra to perform Rachmaninoff’s Concerto No. 3 in D Minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 30. As one of the longest and most structurally complex orchestral works by Rachmaninoff, this piece holds a reputation for being one of the most difficult, expansive and brilliant in the repertory of piano concerti.

Yeol Eum Son’s highly versatile and accomplished performances earned her a silver medal at the Thirteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Included in her prize package were three years of concert tours in the United States and a recording produced by Harmonia Mundi USA.

While still in her early 20s, Son is already considered one of the most important artists of her generation in South Korea where she has performed with almost every notable orchestra. Son has also been a featured soloist with the New York Philharmonic, the Israel and Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestras in Japan, as well as the Germany’s Baden-Baden Symphony Orchestra.

She has been invited regularly to participate in numerous international music festivals, including Germany’s Reingau Music Festival, Poland’s Beethoven Easter and Chopin Piano Festivals, Israel’s Arthur Rubinstein Festival and the Bowdoin Music Festival in the United States. Her performance of the Brahms Piano Quintet with the Takács Quartet during the Cliburn’s Semifinal Round earned her the Steven De Groote Memorial Award for the Best Performance of Chamber Music.

Keith Lockhart currently serves as Conductor of the Boston Pops and Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the summer institute and festival at the Brevard Music Center. He recently completed his highly successful 11-year tenure as Music Director of the Utah Symphony where his leadership of the symphony allowed him to stand at the front of that organization’s historical merger with the Utah Opera to create the first-ever joint administrative arts entity of the Utah Symphony and Opera. Since the merger, arts institutions nationally and internationally have looked to Maestro Lockhart as an example of an innovative thinker on and off the podium.

Keith Lockhart has conducted the Symphony Orchestras of Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Montreal, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Baltimore, Atlanta, St. Louis, Nashville, North Carolina, Indianapolis, Singapore, Toronto and Vancouver as well as the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra. Recent engagements include a return appearance with the Vancouver Symphony and debuts with the symphonies of Nashville and North Carolina as well as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in Glasgow. He made his debut with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain in January of 2005 and led that ensemble on a tour of the UK.

In the 2008-09 season, Maestro Lockhart returned to the Boston Lyric Opera for performances of Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffmann and will travel to Australia for performances with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program         
Igor Stravinsky                      Symphonies of Wind Instruments
Igor Stravinsky                      Symphony in C
                                                            I. Moderato alla breve
                                                            II. Larghetto concerntante
                                                            III. Allegreto
                                                            IV. Largo – Tempo giusto, alla breve

INTERMISSION

Sergei Rachmaninoff            Concerto No. 3 in D Minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 30
                                                              I. Allegro ma non tanto
                                                              II. Intermezzo: Adagio
                                                              III. Finale: Alla breve – Scherzando – Tempo I                                                       

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-10 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=133 Deer Valley® Music Festival 2010 Season

Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s Seventh annual Deer Valley® Music Festival (DVMF) will return in 2010 with five weeks of performances in the picturesque setting of Park City, Utah, July 17 through August 14. For the past six years, DVMF has brought the best Pops, Classical, and Chamber performances to the mountains of Park City. Multiple performances each week give patrons a wide variety of events to choose from.

Highlights of the 2010 Deer Valley® Music Festival include performances with Ben Folds, Randy Travis, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, a concert featuring the music of Led Zeppelin and a performance of Disney® favorites.

Friday Classical concerts and Saturday Pops concerts will be held at the Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater where audience members are invited to picnic under the stars after a day of shopping, hiking or golfing. Chamber concerts will be held on Wednesdays and Thursdays in the more intimate setting of Park City’s St. Mary’s Church and Temple Har Shalom.

Tickets for all Festival concerts go on sale Wednesday, February 17, 2010. At that time, ticket-buyers can call (801) 355-ARTS (2787), buy in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or visit deervalleymusicfestival.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should call (801) 533-NOTE (6683). Ticket prices will increase $5 the day of the performances.

Pops and Classical at Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Saturday Pops concerts at the Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater will include a little bit of everything; rock, country, swing and Broadway show tunes. The series will open with singer-songwriter Ben Folds joining the orchestra to perform some of his best hits. Country legend Randy Travis will also perform with the orchestra as well as the Utah Symphony’s own Tad Calcara (principal clarinet) with his band, New Deal Swing. Audience favorite, Bravo Broadway will also return to the Festival and the series will conclude with the music of Led Zeppelin.

Friday Classical series, also at the Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater will open with a performance perfect for families featuring some of the Disney’s® most loved songs. Other classical performances will include An American Salute with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture and a performance with renowned violinist Mark O’Conner.

Wednesday and Thursday Chamber Series at St. Mary’s Church
Wednesday Chamber Series at St. Mary’s Church will feature Utah Symphony performances of Prokofiev’s Concerto No. 1 for Violin, Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 and Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony. Temple Har Shalom will host a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings.

The serene setting of St. Mary’s will also host the Guest Chamber Series on Thursdays. Audiences will enjoy performances by Imani Winds (wind quintet), SO Percussion (percussion quartet) and the always popular Muir String Quartet (string quartet).

Other Events
VIP packages prior to both Friday and Saturday performances will continue at this year’s Festival and include VIP parking, pre-concert gourmet dinner at the resort, premium reserved seating and access to the intermission reception. Our VIP package pricing includes a charitable contribution built into the various package options. Salon Events will also continue, featuring intimate performances in luxurious private residences by Festival artists. Cost will be $125 per person. For, more information regarding VIP packages and our Salon Events schedule please call (801) 869-9010 or email vipevents@usuo.org .

Volunteer Information
Volunteers for the festival are needed in multiple positions: ushers, ticket takers, backstage, etc. Benefits include complimentary tickets for the night the person volunteers, plus optional discounted tickets. Contact Ashley Albertson at volunteers@usuo.org or (801) 869-9050 for more information.


2010 Summer Calendar

July 17 (Saturday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Ben Folds with the Utah Symphony
David Cho, Conductor
Ben Folds, Guest Artist

July 21 (Wednesday) | 8 PM St. Mary’s Church
Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 1
David Cho, Conductor
Yoonshin Song, Violin

Ravel Pavane for a Dead Princess
Prokofiev Concerto No. 1 for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, op. 19
Schumann Symphony No. 1 in B-flat Major, op. 38 (“Spring”)

July 22 (Thursday) | 8 PM St. Mary’s Church
Imani Winds
Imani Winds, Guest Artists

July 23 (Friday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Disney in Concert
Jerry Steichen, Conductor

Disney® Classics Overture
Selections from The Little Mermaid
“Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas
Orchestral Suite from Beauty And The Beast
“I Wanna Be Like You” from The Jungle Book
Mary Poppins Medley Sing along
Hunchback of Notre Dame Medley
Aladdin Medley
Pirates of the Caribbean
The Lion King Song Suite

July 24 (Saturday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Tad Calcara and New Deal Swing
Jerry Steichen Conductor
Tad Calcara and New Deal Swing, Guest Artists

July 28 (Wednesday) | 8 PM St. Mary’s Church
Brandenburg Concerto No. 3
Barlow Bradford, Conductor
Utah Chamber Artists

Tarik O\'Regan Triptych
Herbert Howells Requiem
Bach Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major, BWV 1048
Four Traditional Folk Songs
Danny Boy
Sakura
Drunken Sailor
The Water is Wide

July 29 (Thursday) | 8 PM St. Mary’s Church
Muir String Quartet
Muir String Quartet, Guest Artists

July 30 (Friday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
An American Salute with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Mack Wilberg, Conductor
Mormon Tabernacle Choir

July 31 (Saturday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Bravo Broadway: Broadway Divas!
Jerry Steichen, Conductor
Lisa Vroman, Guest Artist
Debbie Gravitte, Guest Artist

August 4 (Wednesday) | 8 PM Temple Har Shalom
Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings
David Lockington, Conductor
Robert Stephenson, Oboe

Rossini Overture to Italian Girl in Algiers
Mozart Oboe Concerto in C Major, K. 314
Tchaikovsky Serenade in C Major, op. 48

August 5 (Thursday) | 8 PM St. Mary’s Church
SO Percussion
SO Percussion, Guest Artists

August 6 (Friday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
1812 Overture!
David Lockington, Conductor

Rossini Overture to William Tell
Mozart Eine kleine Nachtmusik - Allegro
Gershwin Selections from Porgy & Bess
Saint-Saens “Bacchanale” from Samson and Delila
Dvorak Overture to Carnival
Beethoven Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, op. 67 - Allegro con brio
Sibelius Finlandia
Tchaikovsky Overture to 1812

August 7 (Saturday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Randy Travis with the Utah Symphony
David Cho, Conductor
Randy Travis, Guest Artist

August 11 (Wednesday) | 8 PM St. Mary’s Church
Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony
David Lockington, Conductor
Brant Bayless, Viola

Elgar Serenade in E Minor, op. 20
Max Bruch Romanze for Viola and Orchestra, op. 85
Carl Maria von Weber Andanta and Hungarian Rondo for Viola and Orchestra, op. 35
Mendelssohn Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, op. 56 (\"Scottish\")

August 13 (Friday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Mark O’Connor with the Utah Symphony
David Lockington, Conductor
Mark O ‘Conner, Violin

Copland Buckaroo Holiday from Rodeo
O\'Connor Surrender the Sword
O\'Connor The Call of the Mockingbird
Glinka Overture to Ruslan und Ludmilla
Bernstein West Side Story: Symphonic Dances

August 14 (Saturday) | 7:30 PM Deer Valley® Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Music of Led Zeppelin with the Utah Symphony

]]> Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=135 Music Director Emeritus Keith Lockhart Returns to Conduct the Utah Symphony
The evening includes Walton’s Cello Concerto and Smetana’s Má Vlast: Selections

SALT LAKE CITY – Music Director Emeritus Keith Lockhart returns to conduct the Utah Symphony in a program featuring guest cellist Julie Albers performing Walton’s Cello Concerto. The evening also includes Smetana’s Má Vlast: Selections. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, February 19th and Saturday, February 20th at 8:00 pm.

In the first half of the program, Albers will join the orchestra for Walton’s haunting and bittersweet Cello Concerto. The evening closes with Smetana’s Má Vlast: Selections, which embodies the composer’s patriotism, loyalty and love for his country.

Keith Lockhart currently serves as Conductor of the Boston Pops and Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the summer institute and festival at the Brevard Music Center. He recently completed his highly successful 11-year tenure as Music Director of the Utah Symphony where his leadership of the symphony allowed him to stand at the front of that organization’s historical merger with the Utah Opera to create the first-ever joint administrative arts entity of the Utah Symphony and Utah Opera. Since the merger, arts institutions nationally and internationally have looked to Maestro Lockhart as an example of an innovative thinker on and off the podium.

Keith Lockhart has conducted the Symphony Orchestras of Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Montreal, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Baltimore, Atlanta, St. Louis, Nashville, North Carolina, Indianapolis, Singapore, Toronto and Vancouver as well as the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra. Recent engagements include a return appearance with the Vancouver Symphony and debuts with the symphonies of Nashville and North Carolina as well as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in Glasgow. He made his debut with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain in January of 2005 and led that ensemble on a tour of the UK.  In the 2008-09 season, Maestro Lockhart returned to the Boston Lyric Opera for performances of Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffmann and will travel to Australia for performances with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

American cellist Julie Albers is recognized for her superlative artistry, her charismatic and radiant performing style, and her intense musicianship. She was born in 1980 to a musical family in Longmont, Colorado. She began violin studies at the age of two with her mother, switching to cello at four. She moved to Cleveland during her junior year of high school to pursue studies through the Young Artist Program at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with Richard Aaron. Miss Albers soon was awarded the Grand Prize at the XIII International Competition for Young Musicians in Douai, France, and as a result toured France as soloist with Orchestre Symphonique de Douai.

Julie Albers made her major orchestral debut with the Cleveland Orchestra in 1998, and thereafter has performed in recital and with orchestras in the U.S., Europe, Korea, Taiwan and New Zealand. In 2001 she won Second Prize in Munich’s Internationalen Musikwettbewerbes der ARD, at which time she was also awarded the Wilhelm-Weichsler-Musikpreis der Stadt Osnabruch 2001. While in Germany, she recorded solo and chamber music of Kodaly for the Bavarian Radio, performances that have been heard throughout Europe. In November, 2003, Miss Albers was named the first Gold Medal Laureate of South Korea’s Gyeongnam International Music Competition, winning the $25,000 Grand Prize.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program          
William Walton          Concerto for Cello and Orchestra
                                    I. Moderato
                                   II. Allegro appassionato
                                  III. Tema con improvvisazioni: Lento - Allegro molto – Adagio

INTERMISSION

Bedřich Smetana        Má Vlast: Selections
                                        Vyšehrad
                                        The Moldau
                                        Šárka
                                        From Bohemia’s Meadows and Forests
                                        Tábor
                                        Blaník


About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-10 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.]]> Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=134 The Utah Symphony Presents Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony
The evening also includes Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 and two Utah Symphony premieres composed by Ruth Crawford Seeger

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Gilbert Varga leads guest pianist Jean-Philippe Collard in Mozart’s Concerto for Piano No. 23 on a program that also includes Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony. The Utah Symphony will also present two pieces never performed by the orchestra, Ruth Crawford Seeger’s Rissolty Rossolty and Andante for Strings. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, February 12th and Saturday, February 13th at 8:00 pm.

The program opens with Crawford Seeger’s Rissolty Rossolty followed by her Andante for Strings. Although relatively unknown, Crawford Seeger (1901-1953) was a leading musical figure of her time, but only now does her music receive the attention it should have had all this time. One of the first American composers to adopt Schoenberg’s twelve-tone system, she later became an American Folk expert. After the opening pieces, Collard will join the orchestra for Mozart’s 23rd Piano Concerto, which features a second movement often regarded as one of the most ravishingly beautiful movements Mozart ever composed. The evening concludes with one of the most popular symphonic pieces in the modern repertoire, Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony. The composer uses Native American and African American music, with folk music overtones of his native Bohemia, creating a musical parallel to the metaphorical “New World” melting pot.

Gilbert Varga, son of the celebrated Hungarian violinist, Tibor Varga, studied under three very different and distinctive maestros: Franco Ferrara, Sergiu Celibidache and Charles Bruck. Renowned for his commanding and elegant baton technique, Varga has held positions with and guest conducted many of the major orchestras throughout the world.

In the earlier part of his conducting career Varga concentrated on work with chamber orchestras, particularly the Tibor Varga Chamber Orchestra, before rapidly developing a reputation as a symphonic conductor. He was Chief Conductor of the Hofer Symphoniker between 1980 and 1985 and from 1985 to 1990 he was Chief Conductor of the Philharmonia Hungarica in Marl, conducting their debut tour to Hungary with Yehudi Menuhin. In 1991 Varga took up the position of Permanent Guest Conductor of the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra until 1995, and from 1997 to 2000 was Principal Guest of the Malmö Symphony. In 1997 Varga was appointed Music Director of the Basque National Symphony Orchestra, leading them through ten seasons, including tours across the UK, Germany, Spain and South America.

Jean-Philippe Collard has appeared as soloist with the world’s greatest orchestras. He has collaborated with such renowned conductors as Semyon Bychkov, Marek Janowski, Eugen Jochum, Seiji Ozawa, Andre Previn, Simon Rattle and Charles Dutoit. He has also performed at the London Proms Concerts, and the Edinburgh, Aldeburgh, Bad Kissingen, Salzburg, Bath, Caramoor, Newport, and Saratoga Festivals. His upcoming engagements include the Boston Symphony with Previn, the Pittsburgh Symphony with Tortelier, the Detroit Symphony with Dutoit, and the Berlin Symphoniker with Casadesus, and recitals all over the world including Houston, Sao Paulo, London and Paris. A prolific recording artist with more than thirty titles to his credit, Mr. Collard’s discography includes the Rachmaninov Etudes-Tableaux and Brahms Hungarian Dances (with pianist Michel Beroff), both named Stereo Review’s Record of the Year in their respective years; the Ravel Concerti with Lorin Maazel and the Orchestre National de France and the Chausson Concert, op. 21 (with Augustin Dumay and the Muir String Quartet) which won the Grand Prix du Disque. He has recorded all five Saint-Saens Piano Concerti with Andre Previn and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the first recordings of Mozart’s arrangements of the six French melodies with baritone Jose van Dam. Other recordings include a disc of Chopin Ballades and the Sonata No. 3, and a Liszt recital disc including the B Minor Sonata.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program

Ruth Crawford Seeger                       Rissolty Rossolty
Ruth Crawford Seeger                       Andante for Strings
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart              Concerto No. 23 in A Major for Piano and Orchestra, K.488
                                                                I. Allegro
                                                               II. Adagio
                                                              III. Allegro assai

INTERMISSION

Antonín Dvořák         Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, op. 95 (“From the New World”)
                                                             I. Adagio - Allegro
                                                            II. Largo
                                                           III. Scherzo: Molto vivace
                                                           IV. Allegro con fuoco

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor

UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=132 Utah Opera Announces 2010-2011 Season
The new season will feature a Utah Opera premiere, a classic tale, a literary masterwork and the opera that started it all

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Opera Artistic Director Christopher McBeth today announced Utah Opera’s complete 2010-11 season offerings. The season begins in October 2010 with Puccini’s La Bohème, followed by Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel in January 2011. In March, Utah Opera presents the company premiere of Mark Adamo’s adaptation of Little Women and the season concludes with Verdi’s Falstaff in May. La Bohéme will open the 33rd season on October 16, 2010 at Capitol Theatre in Salt Lake City.

“The 2010-11 season is particularly suited to the state of Utah for reasons both historical and cultural,” says McBeth. “We open the season with the opera that started it all for Utah Opera, La Bohème, followed by a family favorite, Hansel and Gretel. Then, we move onto Utah Opera’s premiere of Little Women, which is the most successful opera written in the past 20 years and a perfect combination of the American literary masterpiece and remarkably tuneful music. For the conclusion of the season, we turn to Shakespeare and Verdi for one of the cleverest operas ever written, Falstaff. I feel confident this will be a fulfilling season of opera and that it contains something for every music lover.”

Subscriptions go on sale Tuesday, February 2, 2010. Information on becoming a Utah Opera subscriber is available by calling 801-533-NOTE (6683) or by visiting www.utahopera.org. Tickets to individual concerts will go on sale to the general public on August 07, 2010.

Opera Preview Lectures
Enlightening Opera Preview Lectures are held at the City Library on the Wednesday before each opening night at 7:00 pm.

Opera Prelude
Half-hour introductory lectures by Dr. Carol Anderson, Principal Coach, take place in the orchestra level of Capitol Theatre one hour prior to curtain of each Utah Opera performance.

Post-performance Q&A with Christopher McBeth
Utah Opera Artistic Director Christopher McBeth answers questions about the opera following each performance in the Founders Room on the Mezzanine level of Capitol Theatre.

Classical 89 Broadcasts
Utah Opera performances are broadcast on Classical 89.1. A performance schedule is located at http://www.utahsymphony.org/broadcasts.php.

Vivace
Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s social and networking organization, Vivace, offers patrons discounted tickets, special program notes, after-parties with guest artists, great catering and the chance to mingle with musicians and guest artists. Vivace members will be invited to attend the opening night performance of Little Women on March 12, 2011.
 

FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

La Bohème
by Giacomo Puccini
October 16, 18, 20, 22 | 7:30 PM, October 24 | 2 PM
Capitol Theatre

Romance and tragedy unfold in bohemian Paris as Utah Opera presents one of the most popular operas of all time. The opera features the most beautiful melodies Puccini ever composed.


Hansel and Gretel
by Engelbert Humperdinck
January 15, 17, 19, 21 | 7:30 PM, January 23 | 2 PM
Capitol Theatre

Take two lost children and an evil witch, add a pinch of cleverness, combine with glorious music, and this opera creates a recipe for magic! Hansel and Gretel narrowly escape being baked into gingerbread cookies in this Utah family favorite.  


Little Women
by Mark Adamo
March 12, 14, 16, 18 | 7:30 PM, March 20 | 2 PM
Capitol Theatre

Audiences will laugh and cry with the four March sisters as they experience life, love, and loss in 19th-century New England. Mark Adamo’s affectionate adaptation perfectly captures Louisa May Alcott’s beloved novel.  


Falstaff
By Giuseppe Verdi
May 14, 16, 18, 20 | 7:30 PM, May 22 | 2 PM
Capitol Theatre

Mayhem ensues as Shakespeare’s saucy womanizer gets his comeuppance at the hands of the “Merry Wives of Windsor.” Verdi’s voice finds its most brilliant expression in this comedy starring Queen Elizabeth’s favorite character, Falstaff.
]]> Wed, 13 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=131 The Utah Symphony Presents Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy bring their big band sounds to Abravanel Hall

SALT LAKE CITY – Associate conductor David Cho will lead the Utah Symphony and swing sensation Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (BBVD) in a performance that will travel back in time to the era of big bands and rock and roll. They’ll perform some of their catchiest hits such as “You & Me & the Bottle Makes Three,” “Go Daddy-O,” as well as selections from their newly released album How Big Can You Get? A Tribute to Cab Calloway. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, February 5th and Saturday, February 6th at 8:00 pm.

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy arrived on the music scene in 1993 in a legendary residency at Los Angeles’ Brown Derby nightclub, and their irresistible live show and aggressive, musically perceptive approach has proven them over time to be the singular standout among the numerous bands that launched the Nineties swing revival. The seven-man group forged a massively successful fusion of classic American sounds from jazz, swing, Dixieland and big-band music, building their own songbook of original dance tunes, and, sixteen years later, BBVD is a veteran force that to this day adds new fans by the roomful every time they play.

BBVD’s originals rocketed the group into its first phase of stardom, when “You & Me and the Bottle Makes Three (Tonight)” and “Go Daddy-O” were featured in the 1996 indie film landmark Swingers. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, named famously after an autograph by blues legend Albert Collins, sold more than two million copies of the albums Americana Deluxe and This Beautiful Life, and received national critical acclaim while the band’s music has appeared in over sixty movies and television shows.

With their 2003 New Orleans-inspired album Save My Soul, BBVD began playing in theaters and performing arts centers, selling out shows at the Hollywood Bowl, Walt Disney Hall, Lincoln Center, Chastain Park and Constitution Hall, just to name a few. They have appeared as special guests with the great symphony and pops orchestras of the nation, including their first symphony show with the US Air Force Orchestra.

The band’s career milestones have included appearances in the Super Bowl half-time show, writing theme music for ESPN and network television, and performing for three American presidents. They have appeared numerous times on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O’Brian and Live with Regis & Kelly, and wrote, performed and recorded the current theme song for the Carson Daly show after appearing multiple times as the show’s house band. And now, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy’s songs have passed into the classic American songbook, playing alongside pop standard songs in film and television, and even on reality competitions like Dancing with the Stars.  

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $27-$58 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program

Johannes Brahms                      Hungarian Dance No. 5 in G Minor
     Arr. Martin Schmeling
Aram Il´ich Khachaturian          “Sabre Dance” from Gayane
Bedrich Smetana                       “Dance of the Comedians” from The Bartered Bride
     Arr. Hugo Riesenfeld
Johann Strauss                         On the Beautiful Blue Danube Waltz, op. 314
Woody Herman                         Big Band Sounds

INTERMISSION

Come On With The \"Come On\"
Calloway Boogie
Hey Now, Hey Now
Mr. Pinstripe Suit
Minnie The Moocher
You & Me & The Bottle Makes Three
The Jumpin\' Jive
The Reefer Man
The Old Man Of The Mountain
Jumpin\' Jack
“I Wanna Be Like You” from The Jungle Book
Go Daddy-O

]]> Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=130 Thierry Fischer Joins the Utah Symphony for his First Performance as Music Director
Maestro Fischer’s first concert as Music Director features Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony and Brahms’ Violin Concerto

SALT LAKE CITY – In a highly anticipated performance, Maestro Thierry Fischer will lead the Utah Symphony for the first time in his new role as Music Director. The evening will feature violinist Baiba Skride performing Brahms’ Violin Concerto on a program that also includes Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10 and Festive Overture. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, January 29th and Saturday, January 30th at 8:00 pm.

In an extra opportunity for audiences to see new Music Director Thierry Fischer conduct, the Utah Symphony will hold a Finishing Touches dress rehearsal, which will be open to the public on January 29th at 10:00 am.

Maestro Fischer will open the program with Shostakovich’s Festive Overture, which features a bright, blazing and almost band-like sound. Next, Baiba Skride will join the orchestra for Brahms’ Violin Concerto, which features a grand first movement, an exquisite oboe solo in the second and a virtuosic fiery finale. The evening closes with Shostakovich’s passionate and dramatic Tenth Symphony, which premiered shortly after the death of Stalin and now ranks among the composer’s finest works.

In September 2009, Maestro Thierry Fischer was named the seventh Music Director of the Utah Symphony in a unanimous decision from a 12-member search committee. Throughout the search, he conducted the Utah Symphony on two separate occasions to rave reviews and enthusiastic standing ovations.

A native of Geneva, Switzerland, Fischer began his career as a distinguished flautist. As Principal Flute at the Zurich Opera under Nikolaus Harnoncourt and then at the Chamber Orchestra of Europe (COE) under Claudio Abbado, he was profoundly influenced by both maestri, and after replacing a sick conductor at the helm of the COE in his 30’s, he never looked back. Thierry Fischer was Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast from 2001 to 2006 when he took up his current post as Principal Conductor of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Together they have performed throughout the UK (including annual appearances at the BBC Proms), toured Europe and the USA, and are currently recording for Hyperion (French and Swiss composers) and Signum Records Stravinsky.

Fischer is in his third season as Music Director of the Nagoya Philharmonic. He makes his Tokyo debut in May 2010 when he will take the Nagoya Philharmonic to Suntory Hall.

Already well-established in Europe, Fischer has conducted orchestras such as the Philharmonia, Czech Philharmonic, Orchestre National de Lyon, Berlin Konzerthausorchester, and the radio orchestras of Paris (Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France), Stockholm, and SWR Baden-Baden.

Fischer\'s hallmarks are a lightness of touch and transparency of texture, allowing room for vivid characterization. He is renowned for his fresh and collaborative approach, and maintains close relationships with several chamber orchestras, guest-conducting the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra, and Ensemble Orchestral de Paris each season.

Baiba Skride, still in her twenties, has appeared with many of the world’s leading orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra, Sinfonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunk and the Orchestre de Paris.

Highlights this season include a UK tour with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under fellow Latvian Andris Nelsons, followed by an extensive tour in Germany and performances with the BBC Scottish, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Radio Sinfonieorchester Frankfurt, Stockholm Philharmonic, Cincinnati and Houston Symphony Orchestra. Conductors Skride collaborates with this season include Donald Runnicles, Yan Pascal Tortelier, Vasily Petrenko, Sakari Oramo, Mario Venzago and Thierry Fischer.  

Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s Vivace members (a social and networking group for young professionals) are invited to attend the performance on January 30th and a post-performance party at Simply Sushi (180 West 400 South) for just $35. These tickets may be purchased by calling (801) 533-NOTE (6683) or online by using promo code “Vivace.” For more information, please visit www.usuo.org/vivace.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and tickets for Finishing Touches are $14. Tickets can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php and http://www.utahsymphony.org/fischer.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program          
Dimitri Shostakovich             Festive Overture in A Major, op. 96
Johannes Brahms                 Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, op. 77
                                                       I. Allegro non troppo
                                                      II. Adagio
                                                     III. Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo vivace
INTERMISSION
Dmitri Shostakovich Symphony No. 10 in E Minor, op. 93                                  
                                                     I. Moderato
                                                    II. Allegro
                                                   III. Allegretto
                                                   IV. Andante - Allegro

 About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor

UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.]]> Fri, 18 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=129 Utah opera Presents Bizet’s Carmen
Carmen features rejection, jealousy, mutiny and demise

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Opera presents Georges Bizet’s Carmen at Capitol Theatre on January 16, 18, 20 and 22 at 7:30 pm and January 24 at 2:00 pm. The Utah Symphony will accompany Utah Opera in each performance, conducted by Ari Pelto (Utah Opera debut) and directed by Garnett Bruce (Madama Butterfly). The opera will be sung in French with English supertitles.

One of the most beloved opera’s of all time, Bizet’s Carmen gives an explosive interpretation of what can happen when the lines between passionate illusion and real life become intricately tangled. Carmen enjoys toying with men and pushing them to the way side when she becomes bored, but she makes the ultimate mistake when she plays with the emotions of one particular unsuspecting soldier, Don José (full synopsis below).

There will be one twenty minute intermission. Approximate final curtain: 10:20 pm for evening performances and 4:40 pm for the matinee.

A free Opera Preview Lecture will be delivered by Karlyn Bond on Wednesday, January 13th at 7:00 pm in the 4th floor meeting room of the Salt Lake City Library.

There will also be a Questions and Answers session with Utah Opera Artistic Director, Christopher McBeth immediately following each performance in the Founders room on the mezzanine level at Capitol Theatre.  

Tickets for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday performances are $20-$77.  Tickets for Monday and Wednesday performances are $18-$69.  Tickets can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (355-2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall ticket office, the Capitol Theatre box office or by visiting www.utahsymphonyopera.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Utah Opera and Donovan’s Steak & Chop House are offering a special dinner and performance package that includes a three-course meal and a ticket to Carmen for $74 (available Saturday, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). For more information, please call 801-533-NOTE (6683).  

Carmen
Composed by Georges Bizet
Libretto by Henri Meilhoc & Ludovic Halévy
Sung in French with English supertitles
Supertitles provided by Words for Music, and translated by P.Dorgan.
 Premiere: Paris, 1875
Utah Opera 1994

CAST  
Carmen                                                                        Leann Sandel-Pantaleo
Don José                                                                      Chad Shelton
Escamillo                                                                      Christopher Feigum
Morales                                                                        Christopher Clayton
Zuniga                                                                          Gregory Pearson
Micaela                                                                        Erin Snell
Don Jose                                                                      Chad Shelton
El Dancairo                                                                  Brent Turner
El Remendado                                                              Aaron Blake
Frasquita                                                                      Chanel Wood
Mercedes                                                                     Melissa Treinkmann
Lillias Pastia                                                                  Frederick Cook


ARTISTIC STAFF
Conductor                                                                    Ari Pelto
Director                                                                        Garnett Bruce
Assistant Director                                                         Andrea Dorf
Fight Choreographer                                                     Morgan Lund
Dance Choreographer                                                  Richard Wacko
Assistant Dance Choreographer                                    Shaun Ricks
Set Designer                                                                 John Conklin
Costume Designer                                                        Susan Memmott-Allred
Lighting Designer                                                          Nicholas Cavallero
Wigs and Make-up Designer                                        Jennifer Lloyd
Chorus Master                                                             Susanne Sheston
Musical Preparation                                                      Carol Anderson, Jason Hardink
Stage Manager                                                             Rachel Henneberry
Assistant Stage Manager                                               Kat Slagell, Joe Killian

Synopsis
ACT I.
Corporal Moralès and the soldiers waste away the time watching the passers-by, among whom is Micaëla, a peasant girl from Navarre. She asks Moralès if he knows Don José, and is told that he is a corporal in another platoon expected shortly to relieve the present guard. Avoiding their invitation to step inside the guardroom, Micaëla escapes. A trumpet call heralds the approach not only of the relief guard but also of a gang of street urchins imitating their drill. As the guards are changed, Moralès tells José that a girl is looking for him. Zuniga, the lieutenant in command of the new guard, questions Corporal José about the tobacco factory. A stranger in Seville, Zuniga is apprehensive of the dangerous atmosphere of the locale.

The factory bell rings and the men of Seville gather round the female workers as they return after their lunch break. The gypsy Carmen is awaited with anticipation. When the men gather round her, she tells them love obeys no known laws (Habañera: \"L\'amour est un oiseau rebelle\"). Only one man pays no attention to her - Don José. Carmen throws a flower at him. The women go back into the factory and the crowd disperses.

Micaëla returns, bringing news of José\'s mother. She has sent Micaëla, who lives with her, to give him a letter (\"Parle-moi de ma mère\"). José feels that his mother is protecting him from afar. When he starts to read her letter, Micaëla runs off in embarrassment since it suggests that he marry her. At the moment that he decides to obey, a fight is heard from within the factory. The girls stream out with sharply conflicting accounts of what has occurred, but it is certain that Carmen and one of her fellow workers quarreled and that the other girl was wounded. Carmen, led out by José, refuses to answer any of Zuniga\'s questions. José is ordered to tie her up and take her to prison. Carmen entices him to go dancing at Lillas Pastia\'s tavern outside the walls of Seville (Séguedille: \"Près des remparts de Séville\"). Mesmerized, José agrees to help her escape. He unties the rope and, as they leave for prison, Carmen slips away. Don José is arrested.

ACT II.
Carmen and her friends Frasquita and Mercédès entertain Zuniga and other officers (\"Les tringles des sistres tintaient\"). Zuniga tells Carmen that José has been released this very day. A torchlight procession in honor of the bullfighter Escamillo is heard, and the officers invite him in. He describes the excitements of his profession, in particular the amorous rewards that follow a successful bullfight (Toreador\'s Song: \"Votre toast\"). Escamillo then propositions Carmen, but she replies that she is engaged for the moment. He says he will wait. Carmen refuses to leave with Zuniga, who threatens to return later.

When the company has departed, the smugglers Dancaïre and Remendado enter. They have business in hand for which their regular female accomplices are essential (\"Nous avons en tête une affaire\"). Frasquita and Mercédès are game, but Carmen refuses to leave Seville: she is in love. Her friends are incredulous. José\'s song is heard in the distance. (\"Dragon d\'Alcala\"). The smugglers withdraw. Carmen tells José that she has been dancing for his officers. When he reacts jealously, she agrees to entertain him alone (Finale: \"Je vais danser en votre honneur\"). Bugles are heard sounding the retreat. José says that he must return to barracks. Stupefied, Carmen mocks him, but he answers by producing the flower she threw and telling her how its faded scent sustained his love during the long weeks in prison (Flower Song: \"La fleur que tu m\'avais jetée\"). But she replies that he doesn\'t love her; if he did he would desert and join her in a life of freedom in the mountains. When, torn with doubts, he finally refuses, she dismisses him contemptuously. As he leaves, Zuniga bursts in. In jealous rage José attacks him. The smugglers return, separate them, and put Zuniga under temporary constraint (\"Bel officier\"). José now has no choice but to desert and join the smugglers.

ACT III.
The gang enters with contraband and pauses for a brief rest while Dancaïre and Remendado go on a reconnaissance mission. Carmen and José quarrel, and José gazes regretfully down to the valley where his mother is living. Carmen advises him to join her. The women turn the cards to tell their fortunes: Frasquita and Mercédès foresee rich and gallant lovers, but Carmen\'s cards spell death, for her and for José. She accepts the prophecy (Card Song: \"En vain pour éviter les réponses amères\"). Remendado and Dancaïre return announcing that customs officers are guarding the pass: Carmen, Frasquita, and Mercédès know how to deal with them (\"Quant au douanier\"). All depart. Micaëla appears, led by a mountaineer. She says that she fears nothing so much as meeting the woman who has turned the man she once loved into a criminal (\"Je dis que rien ne m\'épouvante\"). But she hurries away in fear when a shot rings out. It is José firing at an intruder, who turns out to be Escamillo, transporting bulls to Seville (\"Je suis Escamillo\"). When he refers to the soldier whom Carmen once loved, José reveals himself and they fight. Carmen and the smugglers return and separate them. Escamillo invites everyone, especially Carmen, to be his guests at the next bullfight in Seville. José is at the end of his tether. Micaëla is discovered, and she begs José to go with her to his mother but he furiously refuses (\"Dût-il m\'en couter la vie\"). Micaëla then reveals that his mother is dying. José promises Carmen that they will meet again. As José and Micaëla leave, Escamillo is heard singing in the distance.

ACT IV.
Among the excited crowd cheering the bullfighters are Frasquita and Mercédès. Carmen enters on Escamillo\'s arm (\"Si tu m\'aimes\"). Frasquita and Mercédès warn Carmen that José has been seen in the crowd. She says that she is not afraid. José enters. He implores her to forget the past and start a new life with him. She tells him calmly that everything between them is over. She will never give in: she was born free and free she will die. While the crowd is heard cheering Escamillo, José tries to prevent Carmen from joining her new lover. Carmen finally loses her temper, takes from her finger the ring that José once gave her, and throws it at his feet. José stabs her, and then confesses to the murder of the woman he loved.

Bios
Christopher Feigum, Escamillo
Baritone (Illinois)
Utah Opera debut
Recently:
Ghosts of Versailles, Opera Theater of Saint Louis;
L\'Elisir d\'amore, Tulsa Opera
Upcoming:
Le Nozze di Figaro, Opera Theater of St. Louis

Leann Sandel-Pantaleo, Carmen
Mezzo-soprano (Michigan)
Utah Opera debut
Recently:
Carmen, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Chautauqua Opera;
Die Walküre, Metropolitan Opera;
Béatrice et Bénédict, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Houston Grand Opera;
Aida, Portland Opera, El Paso Opera;
Stravinsky’s Pulcinella, Brooklyn Philharmonic;
Upcoming:
Bluebeard’s Castle, Fondazione Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi

Chad Shelton, Don José
Tenor (Houston)
Utah Opera Debut
Recently:
Medea, Opéra National de Lorraine
Idomeneo, Opéra National de Lorraine
Die Fledermaus, Dallas Opera
Rigoletto, Lyric Opera of Kansas City
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Théatre de Caen
Upcoming:
La Traviata, Austin Lyric Opera

Ari Pelto, Conductor (Connecticut)
Utah Opera debut
Recently:
La Bohème, Opera Theatre of St. Louis ;
Carmen, La Bohème, Madama Butterfly, New York City Opera ;
Rusalka, La Bohème, Boston Lyric Opera
Upcoming:
Falstaff, New National Theater, Tokyo;
Hansel & Gretel, Portland Opera

Garnett Bruce, Stage Director (Maryland)
Most recently at Utah Opera, Madama Butterfly
Recently:
Tosca, Lyric Opera of Chicago;
La Bohème, Austin Lyric Opera;
Pagliacci, Opera Omaha;
Madama Butterfly; San Diego Opera
Upcoming:
Le Nozze di Figaro, Opera Omaha;
Rigoletto, Lyric Opera of Kansas City;
Madama Butterfly, Dallas Opera
]]> Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=128 The Utah Symphony Presents Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2
The evening also includes Beethoven’s Namensfeier Overture and Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Roberto Minczuk leads guest pianist Stewart Goodyear and the Utah Symphony in Beethoven’s Concerto for Piano No. 2 on a program that also includes Beethoven’s Namensfeier and Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 in E Minor. The performances will be held on Friday, January 8th and Saturday, January 9th at 8:00 pm.

The performance opens with Beethoven’s Namensfeier, which features impulsive and nervous themes except for the more relaxed secondary theme, highlighted by the lyrical violins. Next, Goodyear joins the orchestra for Beethoven’s Concerto for Piano No. 2, which was written when the composer was just 21 years old. The orchestral writing exhibits the full textures and symphonic developments that would become hallmarks of Beethoven’s later orchestral masterpieces. The evening closes with Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 featuring thrilling melodies which the composer become famous for and concludes with an enormously energetic finale.

Roberto Minczuk is in his third season as Music Director of the Calgary Philharmonic. He also uniquely holds two concurrent major posts in the city of Rio de Janeiro Brazil; Artistic Director of the Orquestra Sinfonica Brasileira and Music Director and Artistic Director of the Opera and Orchestra of the Teatro Municipal Rio de Janeiro. Until 2005, he served as Principal Guest Conductor of the Sao Paulo State Symphony Orchestra in Brazil – having completed a nine year tenure as Co-Artistic Director of that same orchestra and a two year period as Associate Conductor of the New York Philharmonic.

A protégé of Kurt Masur, Maestro Minczuk has swiftly established himself as one of the most important emerging talents of his generation. Since his debut with the New York Philharmonic in 1998, he has been invited to conduct extensively in North America, with highly successful appearances at nearly all of the major North American orchestras and many of the European capitals as well.

Mr. Minczuk began his career as a prodigy of the French horn and already by the age of sixteen could count among his significant accomplishments the appointment of Principal Hornist of the São Paulo Symphony. After his graduation from Juilliard in 1987, Mr. Minczuk became a member of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra at the invitation of Maestro Kurt Masur. Returning to Brazil in 1989, he pursued conducting studies with Eleazar de Carvalho and John Neschling.

Stewart Goodyear has performed with many of the major orchestras of the world—including six separate appearances to date with the Philadelphia Orchestra, in addition to performances with the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony, the Pittsburgh Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, the Bournemouth Symphony, the Montreal Symphony, the Dallas Symphony, the Atlanta Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Seattle Symphony and the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra among others.

In addition to his talents as a pianist, Stewart is a composer and frequently performs his own works, including his solo piano work, \"Variations on \'Eleanor Rigby\',” which premiered at Lincoln Center in New York in August 2000, and his Piano Sonata, both of which have received continual acclaim by critics and audiences alike. 

Stewart has been noted for his innovation and is one of the rare classical musicians to always improvise his cadenzas when performing concertos from the classical period. He has been repeatedly praised for both the inspiring individuality and appreciation of the composer’s own style that he clearly conveys in every performance.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program          
Ludwig van Beethoven          Namensfeier Overture in C Major, op. 115
Ludwig van Beethoven          Concerto for Piano No. 2 in B-flat Major for Piano and Orchestra, op. 19
                                                       I. Allegro con brio
                                                      II. Adagio
                                                     III. Rondo: Molto allegro

INTERMISSION

Sergei Rachmaninoff              Symphony No. 2 in E Minor, op. 27
                                                       I. Largo - Allegro moderato
                                                      II. Allegro molto
                                                     III. Adagio
                                                     IV. Allegro vivace

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.]]> Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=127 George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation surprises Utah Symphony | Utah Opera with $1 million holiday gift  

Eccles Foundation grant launches community response to musicians’ October donation made through salary and pension cuts

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) has received a $1,000,000 grant from the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation to support the organization at one of the most challenging fundraising times in its history. The grant will help sustain the vitality, excellence and strength of Utah’s premiere arts organization.

“We are pleased to be able to take this leadership role in response to the much-needed, generous actions taken by USUO this year to re-establish a strong financial position for the future,” said Spencer F. Eccles, Chairman and CEO of the Eccles Foundation. “We hope this grant represents the first step in a community-wide response to the unprecedented contributions made by the organization’s own musicians, administration and staff during the past year through reductions in their own salaries and pensions,” he stressed.

In October 2009, Utah Symphony musicians donated a total of $1.3 million in salary and benefits for the 2009-10 season of performances. This came after they previously accepted a cut in salaries and benefits for 2008-09 that totaled $445,000. Administration salaries have also been cut between 11%-18%.

“We still have a long way to go to ensure long-term financial stability, but this grant marks a substantial beginning,” said Melia Tourangeau, USUO President and CEO. “Our musicians and administration have made many sacrifices for the organization, and it is wonderful to know their contributions have been recognized with this generous grant. All of us, including charitable foundations themselves, are being impacted by the economic downturn, so we are incredibly grateful to the Eccles Foundation for their willingness to step forward and ‘lead out’ with what we hope is the first of many gifts from supporters in the community to help us during this challenging time,” added Tourangeau.

USUO’s Board of Trustees and administration have committed to raise funds to replace the salary and benefit cuts as well as the declines in ZAP and private giving caused by the recession. The Eccles Foundation grant at this critical time encourages other corporations, foundations and individuals to contribute to help support the organization in partnership with the musicians’ donation.

“These funds, awarded in addition to our ongoing annual support, represent our Foundation’s firm belief in the long-term importance of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera to the cultural life of our community and state,” said Eccles Foundation President Lisa Eccles. “We hope our grant conveys our continued commitment to its future excellence, focused on providing opportunities for Utah’s citizens – including our youth – to enjoy and benefit from all that this world-class organization has to offer,” she added.

About the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation
For nearly three decades, charitable grants made by the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation to non-profit organizations in Utah have improved the lives of citizens throughout the state. Its grant-making focuses not only on meeting vital current needs, but also on strengthening the state’s economic base and resources for the future in areas including community/societal needs, education, the arts, health care, and historic preservation and conservation. During the past 10 years alone, the Foundation has contributed more than $300 million to bettering Utah’s communities, large and small alike.  The Foundation’s  long tradition of supporting Utah Symphony | Utah Opera dates back more than 25 years, carrying on the strong personal interest of its founders, George and Dolores Eccles, in the state’s arts organizations, including both the symphony and opera.  More information is online at www.gsecclesfoundation.org.

About Utah Symphony | Utah Opera
The Utah Symphony, which performs at Abravanel Hall, and Utah Opera, which performs at the Capitol Theatre, reaches 450,000 citizens in Utah and the Intermountain region, with educational outreach programs serving more than 200,000 students annually. They perform year round with performances in their home venues as well as the Deer Valley® Music Festival, in Ogden, at Sundance and in communities throughout the Intermountain West. The organization employs 83 full-time musicians and 60 staff. More information is online at www.utahsymphonyopera.org.

]]> Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=125 New Principal Pops Conductor Jerry Steichen Presents Holiday Pops
The Utah Symphony will celebrate the season with the Utah Symphony Chorus and the Utah Opera Ensemble Artists

SALT LAKE CITY – New Principal Pops Conductor Jerry Steichen will celebrate the holiday season with the Utah Symphony, Utah Symphony Chorus and Utah Opera Ensemble artists Chanel Wood, Melissa Treinkman, Aaron Blake and Brent Turner. The evening will feature some of Jerry’s seasonal favorites such as “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,”  “Still, Still, Still,” “O Holy Night” and many more. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, December 18th and Saturday, December 19th at 8:00 pm.

During the performances, the Utah Symphony will welcome special guests to the stage to narrate “Twas the Night Before Christmas.” Friday’s performance will feature the Director of the Utah Symphony’s board, Patricia Richards and Saturday’s performance will feature KUTV 2News’ senior meteorologist Sterling Poulson.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $27-$58 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program

Leroy Anderson                                   A Christmas Festival
Trad, arr. Willcocks/Steichen              “Of the Father’s love begotten” | Utah Symphony Chorus
Handel                                                 Selections from Judas Maccabaeus
                                                                 “Sound an Alarm” | Aaron Blake & Chorus
                                                                 “Father of Heav’n” | Melissa Treinkman
                                                                 “Hallelujah” | Chorus
Leon Jessel                                          Parade of the Wooden Soldiers
Alfred Burt                                           Three Carols
                                                                 “Caroling, Caroling”
                                                                 “We’ll Dress the House”
                                                                 “Ah, Bleak and Chill the Wintry Wind”
Adam, arr. Bassi                                  O Holy Night | Chanel Wood & Men’s Chorus

INTERMISSION

Jim Beckel                                             A Christmas Fanfare
Herman, arr. Wendel                           “The Best Christmas of All” from Mrs. Santa Claus
Meredith Willson                                   “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” from Here’s Love
Frank Loesser                                       “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” from Neptune’s Daughter
Randol Bass                                          “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”
                                                                   Patricia Richards, Sterling Poulson, Narrators
Leroy Anderson                                    Sleigh Ride
John Rutter                                          Shepherd’s Pipe Carol
Austrian Carol, arr. Luboff                   Still, Still, Still
Hagemann/Pierpont, arr. Willcocks       Dashing—Jingle
Irving Berlin, arr. Roy Ringwald            White Christmas
arr. by Randol Bass                               Sing We Now of Christmas
]]> Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=126 The Utah Symphony Presents a Holiday Concert for Children Young and Old
The evening will star Santa Claus and feature a sing-a-long of holiday favorites

SALT LAKE CITY – Associate conductor David Cho leads the Utah Symphony in their annual holiday concert, “Here Comes Santa Claus,” featuring Alta High School’s A Cappella Choir and Madrigals. The evening will include pieces such as “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” “Sleigh Ride” and close with a Christmas Medley sing-a-long.  The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Saturday, December 19th at 11:00 am and 12:30 pm.

Prior to each concert, St. Nick will be in the lobby of Abravanel Hall to take any last minute requests. Also, children are invited to come early to make their own tambourines out of paper plates, ribbon and jingle bells to play during the concert.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $11 and $6 for students and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Program

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov             “Polonaise” from Christmas Eve              
Pyotr Tchaikovsky                      “Russian Dance” from The Nutcracker     
Johann Strauss Jr.                     Overture from Die Fledermaus            
Georges Bizet                             “Farandole” from L\'Arlesienne Suite No. 2
arr. Jim Taylor                            Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
                                                        Chorus
arr. Mark Riese                           God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
                                                        Chorus
Dan Forrest                               Carol of Joy                                     
                                                       Chorus
Randol Bass                               Gloria                                            
                                                       Chorus
Leroy Anderson                         Sleigh Ride                                         
Finnegan/Harris                         Christmas Sing-a-long]]> Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=124 Utah Symphony | Utah Opera Announce Holiday Sale
Premium floor seats will go on sale for $20 to select performances

SALT LAKE CITY – Give the gift of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera tickets this holiday season without paying full price. For a limited time, tickets for select Utah Symphony | Utah Opera performances will go on sale for just $20 for premium floor seats (a savings of up to 50% off regular priced tickets). The sale runs from December 4th through December 23rd and tickets can be purchased in person at the Abravanel Hall ticket office or over the phone at 801-533-NOTE (6683).

Limited quantities of $20 tickets are available for each performance and they are limited to six per customer. For best selection, customers are encouraged to buy early.

$20 tickets will be available for the following performances.

Jan 8 – 9: Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 2
Feb 19 – 20: Keith Lockhart & Julie Albers
Feb 26 – 27: Van Cliburn Medalist
Mar 5 – 6: Mozart Violin Concerto No. 4
Mar 15, 17: The Italian Girl in Algiers (Mon / Wed Only)
Mar 26 – 27: Elgar Symphony No. 2
Apr 9 – 10: Verdi’s Requiem
Apr 16 – 17: Pictures at an Exhibition
Apr 23 – 24: Scheherazade
May 7 – 8: Saint Saëns Piano Concerto
May 17, 19: Suor Angelica & Gianni Schicchi (Mon / Wed Only)
May 28 – 29: Mahler’s “Titan”
]]> Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=123 The Utah Symphony Welcomes Maestro Jeffrey Kahane
The evening features Haydn’s The Creation with Utah favorite Celena Shafer

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Jeffrey Kahane leads the Utah Symphony in Haydn’s oratorio The Creation. The concert will feature the Utah Symphony Chorus and guest vocalists Celena Shafer (soprano), Mark Schnaible (bass-baritone), Brian Stucki (tenor) and Gretchen Windt (mezzo-soprano). The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, December 4th and Saturday, December 5th at 8:00 pm.

As the sole piece on the program, Haydn’s The Creation features 34 musical numbers assembled into three large parts, which present an enormously rich and wonderfully varied account of the creation story. Parts I and II relate the events of the first six days, with the establishment of the plant and animal kingdoms as portrayed in Genesis. Part III focuses on the story of Adam and Eve but stops short of their Fall.

Jeffrey Kahane, renowned as a pianist and conductor, is recognized by audiences around the world for his mastery of diverse repertoire from Bach to Gershwin. He enters his twelfth season as Music Director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, celebrating its 40th Anniversary this season, and continues his successful tenure as Music Director of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. A native of Los Angeles, he began classical piano studies at the age of five with Howard Weisel. At age 14, he was accepted as a scholarship pupil by the great Polish-born pianist Jakob Gimpel, whom he credits as one of the most profound influences on his vision of music as a vehicle for dramatic narrative, poetic expression and ethical purpose.

Utah’s very own Celana Shafer returns to us once again having worked with many of the world’s leading conductors including Christoph von Dohnanyi, Paul Gemignani, Alan Gilbert, Bernard Labadie, Raymond Leppard, Keith Lockhart, Nicholas McGegan, Kent Nagano, Donald Runnicles and Michael Tilson Thomas. Recent highlights include Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortileges with Lorin Maazel and the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall, Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Pittsburgh Symphony led by Manfred Honeck and Norina in Utah Opera’s production of Don Pasquale. Ms. Shafer’s 2009-10 engagements include the title role in Stravinsky’s Le rossignol with the Atlanta Symphony led by Robert Spano in Atlanta, Athens, GA and at Carnegie Hall; Richard Strauss’ Brentano Lieder with the Vancouver Symphony and Sir Andrew Davis; the Mozart Requiem with the Detroit Symphony and Hans Graf; and the Brahms Requiem with the Milwaukee Symphony led by Edo de Waart.

Gretchen Windt, originally from Chicago, recently received her Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music. While studying at CCM, she performed in Dangerous Liaisons (Victoire) and Cosi fan tutte (Dorabella).  She also performed regularly with Cincinnati Opera including the world premiere of Rise for Freedom: The John P. Parker Story. She completed her undergraduate studies at North Park University (Chicago, IL). Operatic highlights there included a full production of Le Nozze di Figaro (Cherubino) and selected scenes from Der Rosenkavalier (Octavian) and Cosi fan tutte (Dorabella). Ms. Windt has also performed leading and supporting roles with regional Chicago companies.

Originally from Utah and quickly distinguishing himself with a voice the Salt Lake Tribune declares is “heaven sent,” Brian Stucki’s performances in the 2009-10 season include returns to the role of Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Opera Colorado and Arizona Opera. He also sings his first performances of Lindoro in L’italiana in Algeri with Utah Opera and Roderick in Glass’ The Fall of the House of Usher with Polish National Opera and on the concert stage, returns to the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra for Handel’s Messiah.

Mark Schnaible continues to impress audiences both in the United States and abroad with his bass-baritone voice and dramatic intensity. In the 2009-10 season, he sings his first performances of Jochanaan in Salome in a return to his home state of Iowa with Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre and returns to Opera Tampa for Rambaldo in La rondine and New Orleans Opera for Capulet in Roméo et Juliette. In the 2008-09 season, he sang Escamillo in Carmen with New Orleans Opera and the title role in Gianni Schicchi for Opera Tampa. He also returned to Boston Baroque for Ariodate in Xerxes and Shreveport Opera for Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte, and reprised Bizet’s Clovis et Clotilde with the Orchestre National de Lille again with Jean-Claude Casadesus conducting for performances that will later be released on the Naxos label.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program

Celena Shafer, Soprano – Gabriel, Eva
Brian Stucki, Tenor – Uriel
Mark Schnaible, Bass-Baritone – Raphael, Adam
Gretchen Windt, Mezzo-Soprano

Part I
Recitative: In the beginning God                                               Raphael, Chorus, Uriel
Aria: Now vanish before the holy beams                                   Uriel, Chorus
Recitative: And God made the firmament                                  Raphael
Chorus: The marv’lous work beholds amaz’d                             Gabriel, Chorus
Recitative: And God said: Let the waters under the heaven    Raphael
Aria: Rolling in foaming billows                                                   Raphael
Recitative: And God said: Let the earth                                    Gabriel
Aria: With verdure clad the fields appear                                 Gabriel
Recitative: And the heavenly host                                            Uriel
Chorus: Awake the harp                                                           Chorus
Recitative: And God said: Let there be lights                            Uriel
Recitative: In splendor bright is rising now                               Uriel
Chorus: The heavens are telling the glory of God                    Chorus, Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael

          Intermission

Part II
Recitative: And God said: Let the waters bring forth              Gabriel
Aria: On mighty pens uplifted soars                                         Gabriel
Recitative: And God created great whales                               Raphael
Trio: Most beautiful appear                                                      Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael
Chorus: The Lord is Great                                                        Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael, Chorus
Recitative: And God said: Let the earth                                   Raphael
Recitative: Strait opening her fertile womb                              Raphael
Aria: Now heav’n in fullest glory                                               Raphael
Recitative: And God created man                                             Uriel
Aria: In native worth and honour clad                                      Uriel
Recitative: And God saw ev’ry thing                                        Raphael
Chorus: Achieved is the glorious work                                     Chorus, Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael

Part III
Recitative: In rosy mantle appears                                           Uriel
Chorus: By thee with bliss                                                         Eve, Adam, Chorus
Recitative: Our duty we performed now                                  Adam, Eve
Duet: Graceful consort!                                                            Adam, Eve
Recitative: O happy pair                                                           Uriel
Chorus: Sing the Lord ye voices all!                                         Chorus and soloists

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor

UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.]]> Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=122 The Utah Symphony Presents the 32nd Annual Messiah Sing-In
Audience members have the rare opportunity to sing along with the Utah Symphony during this once-a-year tradition

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Symphony | Utah Opera Chorus Master Susanne Sheston will lead guest vocalists, the Utah Symphony Chorus and the Utah Symphony in the 32nd annual performance of Handel’s glorious masterpiece Messiah. Concerto-goers are invited to bring their own scores and follow along so they can lend their voices to the triumphant \"Hallelujah Chorus\". The performances will be held the weekend following Thanksgiving at Abravanel Hall on Saturday, November 28th and Sunday, November 29th at 7:00 pm.

Guest vocalists will include Kathryn Kemp (soprano), Leah Wool (mezzo-soprano), Aaron Blake (tenor) and Brent Turner (baritone).

Originally created for Easter, Handel’s Messiah has become a Christmas tradition and has been performed all over the world for more than 250 years. As one of the most famous choral works ever written, Messiah has the power to thrill and inspire audiences.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $14 and $7 for students and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  

The preferred score is the G. Schirmer Vocal/Piano edition, but almost any Messiah score will do.

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor

UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Fri, 23 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=121 The Utah Symphony Presents Play! A Video Game Symphony
Video game music comes to life at Abravanel Hall

SALT LAKE CITY – Video game music returns to Abravanel Hall for one night only as guest conductor Arnie Roth leads the Utah Symphony in an evening featuring music from Blockbuster games such as Super Mario Bros.®, Halo®, World of Warcraft®, Sonic the Hedgehog™ and much more. Graphics above the orchestra accompany the scores, highlighting memorable moments from video games old and new. The performance will be held at Abravanel Hall on Tuesday, November 17th at 8:00 pm.

“I am extremely pleased that the Utah Symphony will be presenting PLAY!,” says Jason Michael Paul, the producer of the show. “The Utah Symphony is an extremely talented orchestra that further legitimizes and adds a tremendous amount of credibility to the art of video game music. The fans have been eager to have a show in Utah so I am hopeful they will come in full force to experience the magic this show has to offer.”

Arnie Roth is a Grammy Award winning artist known for his work with performers Diana Ross, Charlotte Church, Peter Cetera, Art Garfunkel, the Irish Tenors and Dennis DeYoung. He has also been a long time member of Mannheim Steamroller. Roth has conducted the London Symphony Orchestra, the National Symphony, the Atlanta Symphony, the Hollywood Bowl Philharmonic, the Dallas Symphony, the Houston Symphony and the BBC Symphony. Roth served as the Music Director and Conductor for Dear Friends, and More Friends Concerts-Music from FINAL FANTASY. He has produced and conducted music for many films, and has produced dozens of best-selling CDs, released on American Gramaphone, JVC, Mattel, Warner Bros., Sony, Koch and Razor & Tie. Roth received the award for Best Score at the 2003 DVD Premier Awards.

Jason Michael Paul has brought critical acclaim to the video game music genre after creating the first ever video game music concert series in the U.S., Dear Friends- Music from FINAL FANTASY. As a producer, he has staged concerts around the world for such artists as Luciano Pavarotti and The Three Tenors. Paul began his career at a marketing agency handling corporate entertainment and environmental design for clients such as Sony Computer Entertainment America, Sun Microsystems, Adidas, Midway Entertainment, Sony Metreon and Square Enix.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $35-$82 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program
Title                                                                   Composer
PLAY! Opening Fanfare                                     Nobuo Uematsu
Super Mario Bros.®                                           Koji Kondo
Lost Odyssey                                                     Nobuo Uematsu
Sonic the Hedgehog™                                       Masato Nakamura
Battlefield                                                           Joel Eriksson
Shenmue                                                            Takenobu Mitsuyoshi
Castlevania                                                        Michiru Yamane
Kingdom Hearts™                                              Yoko Shimomura

INTERMISSION

THE ELDER SCROLLS® IV: OBLIVION™           Jeremy Soule
Chrono Trigger™ / Chrono Cross™                  Yasunori Mitsuda
World of Warcraft®                                         Jason Hayes
Guild Wars                                                        Jeremy Soule
HALO®                                                             Martin O’Donnell
The Legend of Zelda®                                      Koji Kondo
]]> Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=120 New Principal Pops Conductor Jerry Steichen Celebrates the Music of Broadway
Guest vocalists will join the Utah Symphony to perform songs from Wicked, Chicago, Phantom of the Opera, Music Man, and other favorites

SALT LAKE CITY – Principal Pops Conductor Jerry Steichen will lead the Utah Symphony and noted guest vocalists Stephanie J. Block, Debbie Gravitte and Gary Mauer in an evening of Broadway show tunes. The concert will include popular tunes such as “For Good” and “The Wizard and I” from Wicked, “All that Jazz” from Chicago, “All I Ask of You” from Phantom of the Opera, “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid and many more. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, November 13th and Saturday, November 14th at 8:00 pm.

Stephanie J. Block’s most recent Broadway smash was 9 to 5 alongside Allison Janney. Before that she came straight from playing the role of Elphaba in the Broadway Company of Wicked. Audiences may also recognize her for her portrayal as Grace O’Malley in The Pirate Queen and Liza Minnelli opposite Hugh Jackman in The Boy From Oz. Stephanie also starred in the First National Touring Company of Wicked as Elphaba for which she won the 2006 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Actress. Her voice can be heard on a number of cast recordings as well as numerous commercial jingles.

Debbie Gravitte’s varied career has taken her from the Broadway stage to Symphony Hall and points between. She won the prestigious Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a musical, along with a Drama Desk Award Nomination and New York Showstopper Award. After making her Broadway debut in the original cast of They’re Playing Our Song, she went on to appear in Perfectly Frank, Blues in the Night, Ain’t Broadway Grand, Zorba, Chicago, and Les Misérables.

Gary Mauer was seen, most recently, on Broadway as the Phantom in the Hal Prince production of The Phantom of the Opera. Previously, he starred in the Broadway productions of The Phantom of the Opera as Raoul and Les Misérables as Enjolras. In addition, he performed the leading role of Gaylord Ravenal in the National Tour of Show Boat, opposite his wife, Elizabeth Southard. Mr. Mauer was also a featured soloist in the world tour of “The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber,” with Michael Crawford.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $27-$58 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program
Frederick Loewe                                    My Fair Lady Medley from My Fair Lady
Charles Strouse                                    “Applause” from Applause
Irving Berlin                                          “Mr. Monotony” from Easter Parade
Charles Strouse                                    “Put On A Happy Face’ from Bye Bye Birdie
Meredith Willson                                    ‘Till There Was You” from The Music Man
Richard Adler                                         “Heart” from Damn Yankees
Stephen Sondheim                                “Comedy Tonight” from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Leonard Bernstein                                 “Maria” from West Side Story
Robert Wright/ George Forrest             “Stranger in Paradise” from Kismet
Richard Rodgers                                    “I Enjoy Being A Girl” from Flower Drum Song
Meredith Willson                                    “76 Trombones” from The Music Man

INTERMISSION

John Kander                                           Overture/”All That Jazz” from Chicago
Alan Menken                                          “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid
Claude Michel Schoenberg                     “Bring Him Home” from Les Misérables
Björn Ulvaeus/Benny Andersson           “Mamma Mia” from Mamma Mia
Stephen Schwartz                                 “For Good” from Wicked
Stephen Schwartz                                 “The Wizard and I” from Wicked
Andrew Lloyd Webber                           “Memory” from Cats
Andrew Lloyd Webber                           “All I Ask of You” from Phantom of the Opera
Andrew Lloyd Webber                           “Music of the Night” from Phantom of the Opera
]]> Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=118 The Utah Symphony Welcomes Maestro Pinchas Zukerman and Pianist Jonathan Biss
The evening features Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 1 and Brahms’ 4th Symphony

SALT LAKE CITY – Noted guest conductor and world famous violinist, Pinchas Zukerman leads young American pianist Jonathan Biss and the Utah Symphony in Brahms’ Concerto No. 1 for Piano in D Minor on a program that also includes Brahms’ Symphony No. 4 in E Minor. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, November 6th and Saturday, November 7th at 8:00 pm. The same program will be presented at Brigham Young University in the de Jong Concert Hall on Thursday, November 5th at 7:30 p.m.

The program opens with Jonathan Biss joining the orchestra for Brahms’ impassioned Piano Concerto No. 1, which features one of the most famous openings in concerto repertory with the thundering timpani. The evening closes with Brahms’ epic and final symphony, Symphony No. 4, which has maintained great popularity since its debut in 1885.  

Pinchas Zukerman has remained a phenomenon in the music world for four decades. His musical genius, prodigious technique and unwavering artistic standards are a marvel to audiences and critics. His devotion to the next generation of musicians has resulted in innovative programs in London, New York, China, Israel, and Ottawa. He is the driving force behind the national role that the NAC plays in education. He founded the NAC Summer Music Institute (SMI) in 1999, which now includes the Young Artists Program, Conductors Program, and Composers Program. Pinchas Zukerman was named Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in 1998, and he continues to guest conduct and perform with the world\'s finest orchestras. Mr. Zukerman\'s 2009-10 season includes over 100 performances on five continents, bringing him to Australia, New Zealand, China, Russia, Portugal, Greece, Italy, Germany, and throughout North and South America. This season also marks his first as Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. Mr. Zukerman\'s extensive discography contains over 100 titles and has earned 21 Grammy nominations and two awards: \"Best Chamber Music Performance\" in 1980 and \"Best Classical Performance, Instrumental Soloist with Orchestra\" in 1981. He also leads the Zukerman Chamber Players (founded in 2003), which has performed more than 100 concerts worldwide and recorded four albums.

Jonathan Biss, twenty-nine-year-old American pianist, has already proved himself an accomplished and exceptional musician with a flourishing international reputation through his orchestral, recital, and chamber music performances in North America and Europe and through his award-winning recordings.

Since he made his New York Philharmonic debut in 2001, Jonathan Biss has appeared with the foremost orchestras of the United States and Europe. Highlights of Mr. Biss\'s 2009-10 concert season include debuts with several major European orchestras, including the Royal Concertgebouw, where he joins the orchestra in three Mozart performances and a chamber music concert; the BBC Symphony; and the Orchestra National de Lyon. He also debuts with the DSO Berlin, Oslo Philharmonic, the Kremerata Baltica at the Salzburg Mozartwoche, and returns for concerts with the City of Birmingham Orchestra. In North America, his orchestral engagements include performances with The Cleveland Orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, Toronto Symphony, among others.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Tickets for BYU performance are available by calling 801-422-4322 or by visiting www.byuarts.com.

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program          
Johannes Brahms      Concerto No. 1 for Piano in D Minor, op 15
Johannes Brahms      Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, op. 98


About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=119 The Utah Symphony Welcomes Maestro Emmanuel Villaume and Mezzo-Soprano Julie Boulianne
The evening features Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” and two pieces by Ravel

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Emmanual Villaume will lead the Utah Symphony in a performance featuring Tchaikovsky’s 6th Symphony (\"Pathétique\"), Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite and Shéhérazade with mezzo-soprano Julie Boulianne. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, October 30th and Saturday October 31st at 8:00 pm.

The performance opens with Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite; originally written for children and tailored to their limited abilities (it was transcribed for orchestra the following year), its five movements are based on different fairy tales. Next, soprano Julie Boulianne will join the orchestra for Ravel’s Shéhérazade, which gives a musical interpretation of poems written by Tristan Klingsor. The evening concludes with Tchaikovsky’s passionate 6th Symphony, also known as \"Pathétique\", which, in Russian, refers to something passionate and emotional. The intense and expressive piece features extremes between loud and soft.

Emmanuel Villaume is in his ninth season as Spoleto Festival USA\'s Music Director for Opera & Orchestra. During that time he has led numerous symphonic concerts and opera performances for Spoleto Festival USA. He became Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra in October 2008. Born in Strasbourg in 1964, Emmanuel Villaume began his musical education at the Strasbourg Conservatory and continued his studies in Paris, where he received degrees in literature, philosophy and musicology. He also studied dramatic arts and performed in theatrical productions. The author of noted musicological articles and research papers, he was appointed Dramaturg of the Opéra du Rhin in Strasbourg at the age of 21. During his tenure there he came to the attention of Spiros Argiris, Music Director of the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Italy, who invited him to conduct and narrate Debussy\'s Chansons de Bilitis in 1987, followed by an invitation to make his American debut at the 1990 Spoleto Festival USA with Le nozze di Figaro.

Winner of the Prix Lyrique Français, French-Canadian Julie Boulianne has appeared frequently at Montreal Opera, Quebec Opera and McGill Opera, in roles such as Rosina, Stéphano in Roméo et Juliette, Nicklausse in Les contes d’Hoffmann, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, both Cherubino and Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro, and the title roles in Hänsel und Gretel and Dido and Aeneas. She has also performed extensively in France, including Barbarina and the Second Lady in Die Zauberflöte at L’Opéra de Reims, Zerlina at L’Opéra d’Avignon, and Barbarina at L’Opéra de Tours. She made her U.S. debut in 2006 at Nashville Opera in the title role of Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges, and subsequently sang Isolier in Le comte Ory and Mrs. Soames in the New York premiere of Ned Rorem’s Our Town at the Juilliard Opera Center. In March 2009, Naxos Records released a recording of Shéhérazade and L’enfant et les sortileges featuring Julie Boulianne and the Nashville Symphony.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program
Maurice Ravel     Suite from Mother Goose
                                I. Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty
                                II. Hop o’ My Thumb
                                III. Laideronette, Empress of the Pagodas
                                IV. Conversations of Beauty and the Beast          
                                V. The Fairy Garden

Maurice Ravel      Shéhérazade
                                 Asie
                                 La Flûte enchantée
                                 L’Indifférent                          

INTERMISSION

Piotr Tchaikovsky     Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, op. 74 (“Pathétique”)
                                      I. Adagio - Allegro non troppo
                                      II. Allegro con grazia
                                      III. Allegro molto vivace
                                      IV. Adagio lamentoso

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=116 The Utah Symphony Presents Halloween High Jinks
The annual Halloween performance will feature Grant Cooper’s Rumpelstiltzkin

SALT LAKE CITY – Associate conductor David Cho will lead the Utah Symphony, dressed in their spookiest attire, in the 19th annual Halloween Concert featuring Grant Cooper’s Rumpelstiltzkin narrated by Mark Gollaher. The performance will be held at Abravanel Hall on Tuesday, October 27th at 7:00 pm. Sponsored by KSL Newsradio, the traditional Halloween Costume Contest will precede the concert in the lobby of Abravanel Hall at 5:30 pm.

The annual Costume Contest, which has become known for its fun prizes and outrageous costumes, will be held in the lobby before the concert from 5:30 -6:15 pm (all contestants must be in line by 6:15 pm in order to be judged for the contest). Judges from KSL Newsradio will judge the contest and choose three finalists from adult, child and group categories to appear onstage during the concert to be ranked by the audience.

Tickets for this performance are $8 for students and $18 for adults. Tickets can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).

Costume Contest Guidelines:
To guarantee entry in the costume contest, contestants must enter the line to be judged in the Abravanel Hall lobby between 5:30 pm and 6:15 pm. The group category of the contest is for people who are dressed in a theme (2-20 people). The children’s category is for ages 14 or younger. The adult category is for anyone over the age of 14.  


Program
Edvard Grieg                            Peer Gynt: In the Hall of the Mountain King
Camille Saint-Saens                  Danse Macabre, op. 40
Hector Berlioz                          Symphonie Fantastique, op. 14 (“A Witches’ Sabbath”)
Grant Cooper                           Rumpelstiltzkin]]> Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=117 Utah Symphony Musicians Craft Unprecedented Agreement with Utah Symphony | Utah Opera Management & Board
Innovative partnership meets challenge of unprecedented economic crisis
Musicians’ agreement amounts to the largest donation to Utah Symphony this year ~ $1.3 million
Management and Utah Symphony | Utah Opera Board agree to raise an additional $1 million to balance 2009-10 budget

SALT LAKE CITY – As arts organizations across the country struggle with shrinking endowments and other impacts of the economic crisis, musicians of the Utah Symphony have stepped up to meet the challenge with innovation and leadership.

Representing Utah’s premier arts organization, symphony musicians have partnered with Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) management and Board of Trustees to craft an agreement that will ensure financial stability and a brilliant artistic future for the Utah Symphony.

Thierry Fischer, the newly appointed Music Director of the Utah Symphony, applauded the agreement. “I think it is remarkable and absolutely fantastic that the entire organization is prepared to commit this much in order to preserve this institution for the people of Utah,” said Fischer. “The fact that the musicians, board and staff are able to come to terms on such an important matter speaks highly of the leadership on all sides and also affirms the commitment we all have to bring great music to this community for generations to come.”

The musicians will donate a total of $1.3 million in salary and benefits and have agreed to leave four positions vacant in the orchestra.  In addition to the vacant positions, the musicians’ package for the 2009-10 season includes a donation of four weeks salary, a 50% reduction in pension contribution, and forgoing the 5% salary increase due this fall.

The USUO Board of Trustees have committed to meet and match that donation, accepting the challenge to raise more than a million dollars over budgeted revenues.

“The Board and Management of USUO recognize the musicians’ deep commitment to the organization, and to the people of Utah,” said Board Chair Patricia Richards. “It gives us tremendous flexibility and lays the foundation for the future of this great orchestra.”

“The musicians of the Utah Symphony are clearly committed to long-term fiscal viability,” said Erich Graf, principal flutist and President, Local 104, American Federation of Musicians. “It is equally clear that no arts organization can cut its way to long term financial or artistic health and it is in that spirit the musicians make this donation. With this and under the leadership of Maestro Fischer, our future looks as brilliant as our past.”

“It is now up to us and to the community to meet the $1 million dollar challenge,” said USUO CEO Melia Tourangeau. “The Utah Symphony is the flagship arts organization in our state and a community treasure that must be preserved. This commitment from the Utah Symphony musicians will provide us the tools and structure to sustain the organization during this difficult time and position us for growth as the economy recovers.”

The musicians make this contribution having previously accepted a cut in salary and benefits for the 2008-09 season totaling $445,000. Their contribution from last season included donating two full weeks of salary, giving back half of their pension contribution, donating one week of floating vacation and a portion of their personal services.

Moving forward, the agreement includes a recommitment to the long-standing Utah Symphony tradition of bringing great music to schoolchildren around the state. Each year, the Utah Symphony visits every school district between Ogden and Nebo and this season will visit South Summit, Wasatch, North Sanpete, Carbon, Emery, Wayne, San Juan, Grand, Duchesne, Uintah and Daggett with more appearances to be announced.

The Utah Symphony’s 2009-10 season marks its 70th year of bringing the joy of music to Utah families. Concerts featuring the Masterworks of classical music are performed Friday and Saturday nights in Abravanel Hall.

Under the leadership of new Music Director Thierry Fischer, this season will mark a new chapter, the beginning of a bright future for all generations of Utahns who love great music.]]> Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=115 Thierry Fischer Joins the Utah Symphony as Music Director
Fischer will be the seventh Music Director of the Utah Symphony

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) President and CEO Melia Tourangeau announced today that Thierry Fischer has been named the seventh Music Director in the 70 year history of the Utah Symphony with immediate effect. Currently, the Principal Conductor of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Chief Conductor of the Nagoya Philharmonic, the Swiss conductor was unanimously selected by the 12-member search committee. Former Music Director, Keith Lockhart concluded his tenure on May 30, 2009.

A native of Geneva, Switzerland, Fischer got to know the members of the Utah Symphony through two guest conducting weeks in the past two seasons. Fischer will conduct one performance with the Utah Symphony in the 2009-10 season, but has already taken the lead role in artistic planning and will conduct five Masterworks performances during the 2010-11 season. Following the 2010-11 season, Fischer will conduct a minimum of twelve Masterworks performances each season for the remaining term of his contract. Fischer’s four-year contract includes an option to renew for an additional three years in December 2011.

“I couldn’t be more excited to have Thierry Fischer joining our organization as the new Music Director for the Utah Symphony,” said Melia Tourangeau, President and CEO of USUO. “His musicianship on the podium is exhilarating and leaves everyone wanting more – musicians and audience alike. Off the podium, we would be hard pressed to find someone who would fit Utah better. Thierry’s leadership comes so naturally. He is a genuine personality with great integrity for the music he creates. His authenticity and approachability will endear him to our audiences and the community. Under his leadership, the next chapter in the legacy of the Utah Symphony will be written, and I am honored to help make it happen.”

Thierry Fischer commented, “I am thrilled and honored to be the next Music Director of the Utah Symphony.  From my very first concerts in Salt Lake in October 2007 I realized that here was an orchestra and an organization dedicated to providing great art, and with a hunger for creativity and excellence. I strongly believe that such a positive attitude from everybody involved, even in this difficult economic climate, yields endless artistic opportunities.”

Fischer also looks forward to his first permanent conducting role in the United States. “I look forward very much to building on the orchestra’s strong traditions, bringing new energy and fresh programming perspectives. I am excited to do this in America first of all, and especially in Utah where I think the desire to develop a very lively cultural life is already strong.”

“This is very exciting news for the musicians of the Utah Symphony,” said Ralph Matson, Concertmaster of the Utah Symphony. “We have seen terrific conductors in our search and the selection of Thierry Fischer is a wonderful conclusion to that process. In the time we have spent with Maestro Fischer, there has developed a fine rapport, and very warm mutual regard. We look forward to a wonderful collaboration and fine music making to share with our fabulous Utah audience.”

In November 2006, former Music Director Keith Lockhart announced he would not renew his contract after the conclusion of the 2008-2009 season. At that time, a search committee was organized, consisting of three members of the Board of Trustees, one community representative, two representatives of the organization’s management and six members of the Utah Symphony Orchestra.

“As a search committee, we were looking for an individual who would, first and foremost, bring extraordinary conducting skills and musical talent to the Utah Symphony,” said Jerry Fenn, Chair of the Search Committee. “We also were looking for a person who had the ability to lead – to lead this orchestra to even greater accomplishments and to be a leader of integrity in our community. Finally, we were looking for a person who would demonstrate a strong commitment to Utah and who would generate great enthusiasm and increased support among our patrons and donors. The Search Committee unanimously concluded that Thierry Fischer in every way met the criteria we established and we wholeheartedly believe we have selected the right person to lead the Utah Symphony as Music Director and we are thrilled he has chosen to join us,” concluded Fenn.

The USUO Board of Trustees was focused on finding strong leadership for the orchestra and they found it in Fischer. “Thierry fits the role perfectly,” said Patricia A. Richards, Board Chair of USUO. “He brings us great artistic vision, an attention to beautiful sound and exciting performances which have thrilled our audiences in his past visits. He will also be a perfect complement to our existing strong artistic leadership team of Christopher McBeth as Opera Artistic Director, Jerry Steichen as Principal Pops Conductor, David Cho as Associate Conductor and Susanne Sheston as Chorus Master.”

Fischer will spend a substantial proportion of each year in Salt Lake, accompanied by his wife Catherine. Ms. Richards commented, “In my personal interactions with Thierry and Catherine, I have found them both to be warm, genuine and positive individuals who look forward to spending time here and to getting to know Utah and its people. I know they will find many friends here and I am thrilled to have them as part of our community.”

Fischer will retain his position as Principal Conductor of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in the U.K., which he has held since 2006. “I am proud of my relationship with BBCNOW, and am excited by the prospect of the creative stimulus which leading such different organizations will bring.” Fischer\'s position with the BBC requires him to conduct at least 12 concerts a season including two appearances at the BBC Proms in London.

Fischer is also Music Director of the Nagoya Philharmonic in Japan, where he is currently contracted until March 2011. He spends six weeks a season in Nagoya, and his fresh and ambitious approach to planning and music-making has attracted attention across Japan.

Full Biography

Fischer studied flute with Aurèle Nicolet and began his musical career as Principal Flute in Hamburg and at the Zurich Opera, where he studied scores with the great conductor and cellist Nikolaus Harnoncourt. He first began conducting in his 30s when he replaced an ailing colleague, and subsequently directed his first few concerts with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe where he was Principal Flute under Claudio Abbado. Spending his apprentice years conducting in Holland, Thierry Fischer has since appeared with many leading orchestras in the U.K. and Europe.

Fischer took up his title with BBC National Orchestra of Wales in 2006. His inaugural concert featured Florent Schmitt’s Psalm 47, which was subsequently recorded for Hyperion as the first in a series of French discs, and Messiaen’s Turangalila, which was recorded live for the cover disc of the BBC Music Magazine. Together, Fischer and the BBCNOW, have toured the U.S.A., Spain and Prague and their first disc of Stravinsky ballets was released in August 2009 for Signum Records. Fischer and his BBC orchestra appear every year at the BBC Proms in London and together, have mounted major celebrations of the music of Dutilleux and Messiaen.

Fischer has been Chief Conductor with the Nagoya Philharmonic since April 2008, refreshing the artistic programming and quality of performances. He makes his Tokyo debut in May 2010 when he will take the Nagoya Philharmonic to Suntory Hall.

During his tenure in Belfast with the Ulster Orchestra, Fischer toured with the orchestra to Prague and New York and appeared several times at the BBC Proms, conducted cycles of Schubert, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Brahms, Schumann and Honegger, and began his relationship with Hyperion with a series of recordings of the works of Jean Francaix. His wider discography also includes recordings for, among others, ASV, Chandos, and a Frank Martin disc on Deutsche Grammophon with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, which was nominated for a Gramophone Award.

Fischer\'s hallmarks are a lightness of touch and transparency of texture, allowing room for vivid characterization. He has a keen stylistic sense and brings a fresh approach to repertoire which extends from Bach, the classical repertoire and early Romantics; the Second Viennese School, the great French composers of the early 20th century, a keen advocacy of his compatriots Frank Martin and Honegger, and a particular feel for the music of Prokofiev, Stravinsky and Shostakovich. His affinity also with the unique textures and radical utopianism of Messiaen is no accident, and he played a major role in the BBC’s Messiaen celebrations in 2008. Fischer regularly programs contemporary composers such as Simon Holt (Composer-in-Residence at the BBC National Orchestra of Wales), and is a regular guest of the London Sinfonietta.

Last season Fischer made debuts with the Czech Philharmonic and with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic – joining the latter in a performance of Frank Martin’s rarely- performed opera The Tempest in the prestigious Matinee series in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. The live recording will be released on Hyperion in spring 2010. He also made debuts with several orchestras in the United States, notably with the New Jersey Symphony.  Next month he conducts the Indianapolis Symphony for the first time.

Already well-established in Europe, Fischer has conducted orchestras such as the Philharmonia, Orchestre National de Lyon, Berlin Konzerthausorchester and the radio orchestras of Paris (Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France), Stockholm, Hanover, Lugano and Saarbruecken. In 2009-10 he will appear several times with the SWR Baden-Baden, in a repertoire from Mahler to Britten and Holliger. In parallel to his symphonic career, Fischer\'s collaborative approach has fostered strong relationships with several prestigious chamber orchestras, notably the Scottish Chamber, Northern Sinfonia, Dutch Radio Chamber, and Ensemble Orchestral de Paris.

Thierry Fischer is represented worldwide by Intermusica.  

More information online at www.intermusica.co.uk/fischer.  

For press photos, please visit: utahsymphony.org/fischer.php.

About Utah Symphony | Utah Opera

The Utah Symphony, which performs at Abravanel Hall, and Utah Opera, which performs at the Capitol Theatre, reaches 450,000 citizens in Utah and the Intermountain region, with educational outreach programs serving more than 200,000 students annually.  They perform year round with performances in their home venues and at the Deer Valley® Music Festival, Ogden, Sundance and in communities throughout the Intermountain West. The organization employs 83 full-time musicians and 60 staff. More information is online at www.utahsymphonyopera.org.
]]> Fri, 18 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=114 Utah opera Opens 2009-10 Season with Verdi’s Macbeth
Macbeth explores the path of ambition and manipulation

 SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Opera opens the 2009-10 season with Verdi’s Macbeth at Capitol Theatre on October 17, 19, 21 and 23 at 7:30 pm and October 25 at 2:00 pm. The Utah Symphony will accompany Utah Opera in each performance, conducted by Joseph Rescigno (Tosca) and directed by Stephanie Sundine (Tosca). The opera will be sung in Italian with English supertitles.

One of Verdi’s most honest, exhilarating and fierce operas, Macbeth portrays the story of one of Shakespeare’s strongest women, Lady Macbeth perusing her path of ambition and manipulation. The haunting music will keep the audience riveted as the story of the ferocious couple “trusting in the prophesies of hell” unfolds.

There will be one twenty minute intermission. Approximate final curtain will be 10:20 p.m. for evening performances and 4:40 p.m. for the matinee.

A free Opera Preview Lecture will be delivered by Thomas Cimarusti on Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 7:00 pm in the 4th floor meeting room of the Salt Lake City Library. Assistant Professor of Musicology at Texas Tech University, Cimarusti’s publications have appeared in The Organ Encyclopedia and Perspectives on Ernst von Dohnányi.

There will also be a Questions and Answers session with Utah Opera Artistic Director, Christopher McBeth immediately following each performance in the Founders room on the mezzanine level at Capitol Theatre.

Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s Vivace members (a social and networking group for young professionals) are invited to attend the performance on October 17th and the post-performance party at the New Yorker (60 West Market Street) for just $35. These tickets may be purchased by calling (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).

Tickets for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday performances are $15-$72.  Tickets for Monday and Wednesday performances are $13-$64.  Tickets can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (355-2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall ticket office, the Capitol Theatre box office or by visiting www.utahsymphonyopera.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Macbeth
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave
October 17,19,21,23 | 7:30 pm
October 25 | 2 pm
Capitol Theatre
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Supertitles provided by Words for Music, and translated by Stephanie Sundine.
Premiere: Florence, 1847
Utah Opera 1994

CAST
Lady Macbeth                                                            Brenda Harris   
Macbeth                                                                     Louis Otey       
Banquo                                                                      Young Bok Kim
Macduff                                                                     Joshua Kohl
Lady-in-waiting                                                          Gretchen Windt
Malcom                                                                      Jason McAdams
Fleance                                                                      Matthew Klassen
Doctor                                                                        Brent Turner
Lady Macbeth’s Servant                                            Seth Gruber
Herald                                                                        Dan Nichols

ARTISTIC STAFF
Conductor                                                                 Joseph Rescigno
Director                                                                     Stephanie Sundine
Fight Choreographer                                                Morgan Lund
Set Designer                                                             David Gano
Costume Designer                                                    Susan Memmett Allred
Lighting Designer                                                      Nicholas Cavallaro
Wigs and Make-up Designer                                     Jennifer Lloyd
Chorus Master                                                          Susanne Sheston
Musical Preparation                                                  Carol Anderson, Jason Hardink
Additional Musical Preparation                                  Melanie Malinka
Sets designed by David Gano
Provided by the New Orleans Opera Association

Synopsis

ACT I
Scene 1 - Returning from war after a victorious campaign, Macbeth and Banquo are greeted by a group of witches who prophetically hail Macbeth as Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland, and acclaim Banquo as father of kings to come. Messengers from King Duncan soon arrive with the news of Macbeth\'s appointment as Thane of Cawdor.

Scene 2 - Lady Macbeth, reading a letter from her husband, learns of his victory and of the witches’ predictions. Upon his return, she incites his ambition and persuades him to murder the king, who had recently arrived at their castle. That night, Macbeth kills the sleeping king. Discovering the murder, Macduff and Banquo arouse the castle in alarm. Lady Macbeth is triumphant: The first step to the power she seeks is accomplished.

ACT II
Scene 1 - Lady Macbeth pleads with her husband to forget the past. With Banquo now suspicious and a threat to Macbeth\'s throne, she is convinced that he, too, must be murdered.

Scene 2 - Ambushed by Macbeth’s paid assassins, Banquo is killed but his son manages to escape.

Scene 3 - Macbeth, now exercising the rights of the murdered king, hosts a banquet at which the ghost of Banquo appears. The specter, invisible to all the guests, so unnerves Macbeth that he resolves to visit the witches once again.

ACT III
Macbeth, at the witches’ cave in the midst of their revels, demands an explanation of their prophecy. In answer, he is shown a series of visions. The first apparition, a helmeted head, warns Macbeth about Macduff. The second, a bloodied child, is accompanied by the words: “Behold, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth.” The third apparition is a child with a crown, who holds a small tree. It promises that Macbeth will never be vanquished until “Great Birnam Wood” comes to “High Dunsinane Hill.” The last vision is of eight kings, of whom Banquo, holding a mirror in his hand, is the last. The arrival of Lady Macbeth provides him with courage. They ruthlessly vow to destroy anyone who is a threat to them.

ACT IV
Scene 1 - Near Birnam Wood, Scottish exiles lament the tyranny that has seized their country since Macbeth became king. Macduff mourns the death of his wife and child, who have been murdered by order of Macbeth. The exiles join the English forces and prepare to march against Macbeth under the leadership of Duncan’s son, Malcolm.

Scene 2 - At night in the castle, Lady Macbeth is possessed by guilt and terror at her part in the murderous schemes she has carried out. As her attendant and doctor look on in horror, she succumbs to madness.

Scene 3 - Macbeth learns of the death of his wife, and is told of the approach of the enemy, each one holding a branch and giving the impression of a moving Birnam forest. He prepares to meet them. The opposing armies meet in battle. During the ensuing fight, Macbeth comes face to face with Macduff, who \"was from his mother’s womb untimely ripped,\" and is slain by him. Amid the rejoicing of the liberated Scots, Malcolm is proclaimed King of Scotland.

Bios
Brenda Harris, Lady Macbeth
Soprano (Connecticut)
Most recently at Utah Opera, Ariadne auf Naxos
Recently:
Owen Wingrave, Chicago Opera Theatre;
Turn of the Screw, Portland Opera;
Street Scene, Chautauqua Opera,
Tosca, Opera Cleveland
Upcoming:
Macbeth, Opera Lyra Ottawa;
Roberto Devereux, Minnesota Opera;
Don Giovanni, Lyric Opera of Kansas City

Louis Otey, Macbeth
Baritone (South Dakota)
Utah Opera Debut
Recently:
Louise, Spoleto Festival U.S.A;
Die Fledermaus, Lyric Opera of Chicago, L’Opéra de Montreal, New Orleans Opera, and Florentine Opera;
The Flying Dutchman, Austin Lyric Opera;
Macbeth, Arizona Opera;
Il trovatore, Portland Opera, Opera Pacific
Upcoming:
La traviata, Metropolitan Opera

Joshua Kohl, Macduff
Tenor (Connecticut)
Most recently at Utah Opera: Grapes of Wrath
Recently:
La boheme, Pittsburgh Opera;
Salome, Opera Theater of St. Louis;
L’elisir d’amore, Virginia Opera;
Upcoming:
Die Zauberflote, Sarasota Opera
Madama Butterfly, Dallas Opera]]> Thu, 17 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=113 The Utah Symphony Welcomes Maestro Carlos Kalmar and Principal Keyboard Jason Hardink
The evening includes Brahms’ 2nd Symphony, Messiaen’s Oiseaux exotiques and Ravel’s La Valse

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Carlos Kalmar will lead Principal Keyboard Jason Hardink and the Utah Symphony in Messiaen’s Oiseaux exotiques, inspired by songs from exotic birds. The program will also include Brahms’ light and cheerful Symphony No. 2 as well as Ravel’s La Valse. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, October 9th and Saturday, October 10th at 8:00 pm.

Carlos Kalmar was appointed Music Director of the Oregon Symphony Orchestra in 2003, and in April, 2008, his contract was extended until 2013. He is also Music Director of the Grant Park Music Festival in Chicago. During his career, he has been Music Director of the Hamburg Symphony, Stuttgart Philharmonic, Vienna’s Tonkunstlerorchester and the Anhaltisches Theater in Dessau, Germany. Upcoming engagements include re-engagements with the Baltimore Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Saint Louis Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, the Lahti Symphony, the Madrid ONE, the Czech Philharmonic, and the Nashville Symphony, and also concerts with the San Francisco Symphony, and the City of Birmingham Orchestra. Mr. Kalmar’s recent guest conducting engagements in North America have included subscription concerts with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Houston Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony, New World Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and the NACO in Ottawa. Carlos Kalmar was born in Uruguay to Austrian parents. He showed an interest in music at an early age and began studying violin at age six. By age 15 his musical development led him to the Vienna Academy of Music where he studied conducting with Karl Osterreicher. He resides in Portland, Oregon and Vienna.

Pianist Jason Hardink holds the position of Principal Symphony Keyboard/Opera Rehearsal Accompanist at the Utah Symphony. A native of North Smithfield, Rhode Island, he attended Oberlin Conservatory of Music, studying piano with Sanford Margolis. Hardink went on to receive his Master of Music in piano performance from Rice University, where he was awarded the Sallie Shepherd Perkins Prize for Best Achievement in Music. He also completed a Doctor of Musical Arts degree as a student of Brian Connelly, also at Rice. He performed the complete Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus in cities all over the United States, as well as Des Canyons aux Étoiles… with the Utah Symphony as a part of a festival which celebrated Messiaen’s historic visit to Utah in 1972. Hardink’s other performing interests range from recital programs given on period instruments to concerts devoted entirely to new music. He has been awarded fellowships at Aspen Music Festival, the National Orchestral Institute, as well as from the Brown Foundation in Houston. Hardink is much sought after as a chamber musician. He has appeared at the Grand Teton Music Festival, Music on the Hill, and the Cascade Head Chamber Music Festival. A strong advocate for new music, he served as the pianist for the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble for three seasons. During this time he premiered over 15 works by composers such as Thomas Osborne, Daniel Kellogg, Vache Sharafyan, Pierre Jalbert, and Stefan Freund, and was featured in Curtis Curtis-Smith’s Rhapsodies for bowed piano, as well as Jason Eckardt’s wildly virtuosic concerto A Glimpse Retraced. In Salt Lake City he performs with the Canyonlands New Music Ensemble.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (355-2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program
Olivier Messiaen        Oiseaux exotiques
Maurice Ravel            La Valse
          INTERMISSION
Johannes Brahms      Symphony No. 2 in D Major, op. 73
                                       I. Allegro non troppo
                                       II. Adagio non troppo
                                       III. Allegretto grazioso, quasi andantino –
                                       Presto ma non assai – Tempo I – Presto
                                       ma non assai – Tempo I
                                       IV. Allegro con spirito

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=112 The Utah Symphony Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Salute to Youth
Eight youth musicians will perform concerto movements with the Utah Symphony

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Symphony will celebrate its 50th anniversary of Salute to Youth with some of the state’s most gifted young musicians performing at Abravanel Hall on Tuesday, September 29th at 7:00 pm. This year three pianists, two violinists, one flutist, one bass player and one marimba player will join the Utah Symphony to perform different concerto movements led by associate conductor David Cho. To receive eligibility for Salute to Youth, these eight young musicians either had to qualify from preliminary auditions or from the Youth Guild recital auditions.

Of the 40 students who auditioned, 11 qualified from the Youth Guild recital auditions in the spring and 29 qualified from the Salute to Youth preliminary auditions. The judges for this year’s competition were Kory Katseanes (director of orchestras at BYU), Yuki MacQueen (violinist, Utah Symphony), Nick Norton (trumpeter, Utah Symphony), and Paul Pollei (founder and director of the Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition).

“The Utah Symphony’s Salute to Youth concert has been a 50-year tradition of cultivating the musicians of tomorrow. More than 300 students have had the chance to perform with the professional musicians of this great orchestra. This opportunity helps young performers learn the countless details involved in putting together a professional performance,” said Beverly Hawkins, Symphony Education Manager.

Deseret News has been the sponsor of Salute to Youth for the entire 50 years. This year, the Sorenson Legacy Foundation joins them in sponsoring this concert.  

Tickets for this performance are $8 for students and $18 for adults (general admission seating). Tickets can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.

Press photo available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Program
Georges Hüe                          Fantaisie for Flute and Orchestra
     Gabriella Roderer, Flute
Serge Koussevitzky               Concerto for Double Bass
                                                   I. Allegro
     Christian Hales, Bass
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart   Concerto No. 17 in G Major, K. 453
                                                   I. Allegro
     Trenton Chang, Piano
Franz Liszt                              Hungarian Fantasy
     Verina Chen, Piano

          INTERMISSION

Ney Rosauro                         Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra
                                                   I. Greetings (Saudação)
     Camille Johnson, Marimba
Dmitri Kabalevsky                  Concerto in C Major, op. 48
                                                   I. Allegro molto e con brio
     Aubree Oliverson, Violin
Édouard Lalo                          Symphonie Espagnole, op. 21
                                                   I. Allegro non troppo
     Sara Noel Bauman, Violin
Sergei Rachmaninoff             Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp minor
                                                   I. Vivace
     Ubeeng Kueq, Piano


ARTIST’S PROFILE

Gabriella Roderer, 18 of Wellsville, Utah began studying the flute at the age of ten. She won First Place at the 2006 MTNA Nationals Senior Woodwind competition in Austin, Texas, was a Finalist in the 2007 National Flute Association High School  Solo Competition in Albuquerque, New Mexico, soloed with the Utah Symphony on the Salute to Youth Concert in 2007, won 1st place at the MTNA State Woodwind Competition 2005, 2004, 1st place at the Utah State Fair Competition 2005, 2004, 1st place at the Youth Guild Solo Competition 2007, 2006, 2004, 2003, received Superior Ratings at Federation 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002 , and was a Logan High School Concerto  Night Winner 2007, 2006.  She has studied with Rebecca Fuller of Wellsville, Cindy Henderson of Kaysville, and is now currently a Sophomore at The Manhattan School of Music in New York getting her Bachelors in Flute Performance under the tutelage of Linda Chesis. 

Camille Josephine Johnson (17) is a percussionist and a pianist, currently performing with the Utah Youth Symphony, and the Davis High School Drum Line. Born in Colorado, Camille moved to Utah at the age of five, where she began piano lessons with Carolyn Oldham (and subsequently Diane Moon and Penni Eads). Her piano studies in AIM and Federation earned her a spot with the school jazz band for three years. Camille was recognized as the music student of the year in 2008. At 14 years of age, she began percussion lessons with Heath Wolf, and has placed 1st and 2nd with marimba solos at the Utah State Fair. She has performed with HYPE (Honors Youth Percussion Ensemble) for two years, and the Davis Youth Symphony for one year.

Ubeeng Kueq - born in Taiwan in 1993, he began studying the piano at the age of 11 with Iojiah Chan. Soon after, he moved to Salt Lake City where he continued piano lessons with Alexis Boskovich. Ubeeng has studied with Dr. Vedrana Subotic since August of 2006. He has won many prizes at competitions including first place in the 2007 and 2008 Summer Arts Piano Competition and the 2009 UMTA Concerto Competition. He has performed in the Lobbyfest at Abravanel Hall, the Assembly Hall on Temple Square, and numerous concerts in the Libby Gardner Concert Hall. Ubeeng is a junior at East High School and enjoys mountain biking during his free time.

Verina Chen, age 15, began piano lessons at the age of eight years old, with Dr. Irene Peery-Fox. Verina has placed first in the Utah State Fair Competition twice, first in the MTNA Jr. Baldwin Piano Competition, first in the Encore Concerto Competition twice, and first in the METTA Ensemble Competition. She has also received first prize alternate in the MTNA Jr. Baldwin Competition. She has soloed with the Utah Symphony for their Annual Salute to Youth concert, performing Chopin’s Piano Concerto in F Minor, with the Utah Valley Symphony and the American Fork Symphony performing Mozart\'s Piano Concerto in A Major, K. 488, as well as giving solo performances in the Assembly Hall in Salt Lake City, and in the Honors Recitals as winner of the Encore Piano Competition.  In addition to piano, Verina has studied viola for nine years. Verina is in eleventh grade at Timpview High School in Provo.

Christian Hales (16) began studying bass with David Yavornitzky at age nine. He studied bass with Brian Jones for a year’s time, when he was 11, during which he also learned the fundamentals of playing jazz bass. Christian has participated in National Orchestra Camp in 2007, Music @ Menlo in 2008, and the Summer Chamber Music Workshop at the University of Utah, as well as, Blue Sky Music Camp at Westminster College in 2009. Christian enjoys chamber music and has played in Young Artist Chamber Players under Jack Ashton for two years. He plays in the Skyline High School Philharmonic, as well as in the Skyline Jazz Band.

11-year-old Aubree Oliverson from Orem is not only a top violin virtuoso but also an award winning composer. She has won back-to-back Utah Music Conservatory Competitions in composition. She is a multiple state Reflections winner for musical composition and received national Awards of Excellence and Merit for her pieces. Aubree has participated in the Utah State Fair winner’s recital and was recently selected as soloist at the Suzuki Institute student honors recital. She was a member of the Suzuki National Orchestra and is also a member of the renowned Rocky Mountain Strings. She and her pianist father enjoy performing together and they enjoy traveling throughout the western United States performing for appreciative concert goers. Aubree co-composed and recorded a beautiful CD which features several of Aubree\'s original violin works.

Trenton H. Chang, 11, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His parents originally came from Taiwan, R.O.C. Trenton began piano lessons when he was almost 5 years old. Currently, he studies with Gary Amano and Anarie Petroff. He received the Mini Artist award in the USU Piano Festival at age 5 and continued on to win many awards in the USU Piano festivals. At age 8, he won 1st place in the 2006 UMTA State Concerto Competition. He also won 3rd place in the Utah State Fair Piano Competition in 2008. Trenton likes to compose music and he received national recognition for his creative abilities in the MTNA Composition Competition. 

Sara Noel Bauman began playing the violin at age 3 and has studied with Katherine Kunz, Joseph Gold (Oakland, CA), Meredith Campbell, Jenny Oaks Baker and is currently studying with Hassa Borup at the University of Utah. At the age of 12, Sara soloed with the Temple Hill Symphony in Oakland, California. She has been a member of the Young Artist Chamber Players, Temple Hill Symphony Orchestra, and Utah Youth Symphony and is a church organist and choir accompanist. Sara is a junior at East High School where she has served as a student body officer and member of the varsity tennis team. 
]]> Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=111 The Utah Symphony Welcomes Maestro Julian Kuerti and Principal Bassoon Lori Wike
The evening includes Berlioz’s Romeo and Juliet, Williams’ The Five Sacred Trees and Smetana’s Richard III

SALT LAKE CITY – Guest conductor Julian Kuerti will lead Principal Bassoon Lori Wike and the Utah Symphony in Williams’ The Five Sacred Trees Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra on a program that includes Berlioz’s Romeo and Juliet and Smetana’s Richard III. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, September 25th and Saturday, September 26th at 8:00 pm. There will be a Finishing Touches dress rehearsal on September 25th at 10:00 am.

The program will open with three excerpts from Berlioz’s Romeo and Juliet, beginning with a vivid portrait of Romeo, leading into the emotional and romantic “Love Scene,” and ending with the exquisite music known as the “Queen Mab Scherzo.” Then, Principal Bassoon Lori Wike will join the orchestra for John Williams’ five movement concerto for bassoon, The Five Sacred Trees, featuring masterly orchestration that evoke haunting themes. The evening closes with Smetana’s Richard III: the composer himself said this about the piece, “In the very first bar I present a kind of musical characterization of Richard’s personality, and this main theme in all manner of different forms predominates throughout the entire work.”

As assistant conductor to James Levine at the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Canadian conductor Julian Kuerti made his BSO subscription debut in March 2008. He returned shortly after to the BSO on two last-minute occasions in July and November 2008. The Boston Globe lauded him all three times, saying most recently that “Kuerti rose to the occasion and pulled off a triumphant concert. This was easily his finest hour – or two-and-a-half – with the orchestra thus far.”

Kuerti was born into one of Canada’s most distinguished musical families; his father is famed pianist Anton Kuerti. He began his instrumental training on the violin. While completing an honors degree in engineering and physics at the University of Toronto, Julian kept up the violin, performing as concertmaster and soloist with various Canadian orchestras. Kuerti began his conducting studies in 2000 at the University of Toronto.

Kuerti studied with David Zinman at the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen in 2004 and with Finnish Maestro Jorma Panula at the NAC Conductors Programme in Ottawa. In 2005, he was one of two conducting fellows at Tanglewood, where he had the opportunity to learn from conductors such as James Levine and Kurt Masur. That same year, Kuerti also finished his work with Lutz Köhler at the University of the Arts Berlin, whom he had studied with since 2001.

From 2005-08, Kuerti served as founding artistic director and principal conductor of Berlin’s Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop. He also served as assistant conductor to Ivan Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra in 2007-08.

Lori Wike joined the Utah Symphony as Principal Bassoon in 2005. Originally from North Carolina, she holds a Bachelor of Music degree and Performer\'s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music and a Master of Arts degree from the University of California, Irvine. Her principal teachers were John Hunt, Nancy Goeres, Mark Popkin, and Michele Grego. A former member of the Louisville Orchestra, Ms. Wike has also performed with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, the Utah Festival Opera, the San Bernardino Symphony, the Redlands Symphony, the Moscow Chamber Orchestra and the Aspen Festival Orchestra. Prior to joining the Utah Symphony, she performed for three seasons with the New World Symphony under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. Her solo appearances include performances with the Utah Symphony, the Eastman Musica Nova Ensemble, the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, the University of California-Irvine Symphony and the Utah Arts Festival. She is a frequent performer on both the Nova and Intermezzo Chamber Music series in Salt Lake and is also a member of the Three Fish and a Scorpion woodwind quartet. Ms. Wike is currently Adjunct Associate Professor of Bassoon at the University of Utah and Instructor at Westminster College.

On Friday, September 25th at 10:00 am, the Utah Symphony will hold a Finishing Touches dress rehearsal which will be open to the public. During this rehearsal, audience members will experience the diligence and dedication that goes into each performance. Tickets for the rehearsal are $14.   

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (355-2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to our RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program
Hector Berlioz            Selections from Roméo et Juliette, op. 17
     Romeo Alone; Festivities at Capulet’s
     Love Scene
     Queen Mab Scherzo

          Intermission

John Williams             The Five Sacred Trees Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra
     Eó Munga
     Totan
     Eó Rossa
     Craeb Uisnig
     Dathi

Bedřich Smetana         Richard III, op. 11

About UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor
UBS is proud to continue as the Season Sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.
]]> Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=110 The Utah Symphony and New Principal Pops Conductor Jerry Steichen Present Cirque de la Symphonie
In his first official concert as Principal Pops Conductor, Jerry Steichen will lead the orchestra as cirque artists perform on stage

SALT LAKE CITY – New Principal Pops Conductor (and in this case ringmaster) Jerry Steichen will lead the Utah Symphony as they collaborate with some of the best cirque artists in the world on Friday, September 18th and Saturday, September 19th at 8:00 pm in Abravanel Hall. Cirque artists will balance, dance, contort and juggle along to pieces by composers such as Dvořák, Bizet, and Tchaikovsky to create a unique and entertaining experience. The energy between the two art forms will enhance the excitement of the other for an evening fit for the entire family.

About Cirque de la Symphonie

Cirque de la Symphonie is an exciting new production designed to bring the magic of cirque to the music hall. It is an elegant adaptation of some of the most amazing cirque performances witnessed anywhere, and it showcases many of the best artists in the world. The audience is thrilled and bedazzled by aerial flyers, acrobats, contortionists, dancers, jugglers, balancers, and strongmen. These are some of the most accomplished veterans of exceptional cirque programs from across the globe. They include world record holders, gold-medal winners of international competitions, Olympians and some of the most original talent ever seen. Their performances are uniquely adapted to stage accommodations shared with the symphony, and each artist’s performance is choreographed to the music arrangement provided by the maestro. When the artists of Cirque de la Symphonie perform in front of the full orchestra, an incredible fusion of these two great art forms takes place. The aerialists and acrobats turn the concert into a three dimensional entertainment extravaganza, and the orchestra seems to play with enhanced enthusiasm. Veteran concert-goers and new patrons alike are thrilled by the exhilarating cirque performances and the majesty of the live symphony orchestra.

Jerry Steichen, Utah Symphony Principal Pops Conductor

With a career that ranges from symphony to opera, Broadway to chamber music, Conductor Jerry Steichen has es­tablished himself as one of America’s most versatile musicians. In January, 2009 he was named Principal Pops Conductor of the Utah Symphony. He has conducted the Boston Pops, New Jersey Symphony, New York City Opera Orchestra in concert, New York Pops, Hartford Symphony, Wheeling Symphony and the Eastern Connecticut Symphony. His international credits include the NDR Orchestra - Hanover (Germany), the NRK Orchestra (Oslo, Norway) and the Tokyo City Symphony. Maestro Steichen cur­rently serves as Music Director of the Ridgefield (Connecticut) Symphony and as the Associate Conductor of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, conducting classics concerts, the Pops series, Young People’s Concerts and their summer parks concert series.

Jerry is a native of Tonkawa, Oklahoma and holds degrees from Northern Okla­homa College, Oklahoma City University and the University of Southern Cali­fornia. He was selected for the prestigious Merola Program at San Francisco Opera and spent a summer at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara.

Tickets

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $27-$58 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (6683). Ticket prices will increase $5 day of performance.

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Program

Antonín Dvořák                     Carnival Overture, op. 92
Georges Bizet                        Carmen Suites No. 2 Danse Boheme (“Gypsy Song”)
     Vladimir Tsarkov- Ring Juggling
Georges Bizet                                   Carmen Suite No. 1 (“Les Toreadors”)
     Alexander Streltsov- Spinning Cube
Aram Khachaturian   “Valse” from Masquerade
     Elena Tsarkova- Contortion/Dance
Emmanuel Chabrier               España
Camille Saint-Saëns               “Bacchanale” from Samson et Delilah
     Aloysia Gavre- Aerial Hoop
          INTERMISSION
Pyotr Tchaikovsky                 “Danse des cygnes” from Swan Lake
     Vladimir & Elena - Magic Act with Conductor
Camille Saint-Saëns               Danse Macabre, op. 40
     Christine Van Loo - Aerial Rope
John Williams                         “Harry’s Wondrous World” from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Antonín Dvořák                     Slavonic Dance No. 7, op. 72
     Vladimir & Elena - Juggling Batons with Ribbon Dance
John Williams                        “Across the Stars” from Star Wars: Episode II, Attack of the Clones
     Alexander Streltsov - Aerial Artistry on Silk Fabrics
Johann Sebastian Bach         Toccata and Fugue in D minor
     Jarek & Darek - Strongmen
Georges Bizet                        Carmen Suite No. 1 (“Les Toreadors”)
]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=109 UTAH SYMPHONY | UTAH OPERA PRESENTS “SHAKESPEARE IN MUSIC” FESTIVAL
The Festival will celebrate the works of William Shakespeare as expressed through music.

SALT LAKE CITY – Throughout September and October, Utah Symphony | Utah Opera will again collaborate with community partners in art, dance, food and literature for an annual educational festival – this year themed Shakespeare in Music – which will give the local community a deeper look into Shakespeare’s influence. Various festival lectures and artistic presentations around Salt Lake City will supplement an upcoming Utah Opera production of Verdi’s Macbeth and Utah Symphony performances of Berlioz’s Romeo & Juliet and Smetana’s Richard III. During these events, patrons will delve into the cultural context of these musical works and the original plays which inspired them, thus gaining greater understanding of how Shakespeare’s legacy has tapped into a broad artistic tradition.

“The more you know about Shakespeare and music, the richer your experience will be at any related event or performance,” said Paula Fowler, Director of Education and Community Outreach for Utah Symphony | Utah Opera. “Our goal is to give people access to each of these art forms and add something extra to that experience. This festival will hopefully give us all more reasons to treasure the works of the Bard.”

Partner organizations including Ballet West, OPERA America, Salt Lake Arts Center, Elizabeth’s Bakery & Tea Shop, Utah Shakespearean Festival and the U of U’s School of Music will participate in several of these festival events and services. (See below for a full schedule)
For tickets to any Utah Symphony or Utah Opera performances, please call (801) 355-ARTS (2787) or visit www.utahsymphony.org.  
For more information about “Shakespeare in Music,” please call 801-869-9090.

“Shakespeare in Music” Schedule of Events
Performances
• Utah Symphony – Romeo & Juliet (Berlioz’s symphonic poem with Smetana’s Richard III ) September 25 & 26 |  8pm @ Abravanel Hall
• Utah Opera presents Verdi’s Macbeth October 17, 19, 21, 23 & 25 | 7:30pm @ Capitol Theatre, October 25 | 2pm @ Capitol Theatre
• Utah Opera Ensemble Apprentice Artists “Much Ado About Opera” (Scenes from various operas based on Shakespeare plays) October 29 | 7:30 pm @ the Thompson Chamber Music Room in Gardner Hall at the U of U | FREE

Festival Lectures & Events
• “Music & Dance of Shakespeare’s Day” by Dr. April Greenan (UofU School of Music) September 3 | 7 pm @ Utah Opera Production Studios | Featuring live musical examples by Renaissance band Dorian Mirth
• “Songs, Sonnets and Shakespeare: How Music is Utilized Within Shakespeare’s Plays” by Michael Bahr (Utah Shakespearean Festival) September 10 | 7 pm @ The Art Center Auditorium Studios 3rd floor dance studio
• “Traditional British Foods” with Chef Tara Duff September 17 | 7 pm @ Elizabeth’s Bakery & Tea Shop | $10/person | Call 801.533.6683 to purchase, limit 50 patrons
• “Shakespeare at the Cinema, Symphony and Opera” by Bettie Jo Basinger (UofU School of Music) September 24 | 7 pm @ The Art Center Auditorium
• Macbeth Opera Preview Lecture by Dr. Tom Cimarusti (Assistant Professor of Musicology, Texas Tech University) | March 11: 7:30pm @ The City Library 4th floor meeting room

Online Course
• Macbeth, through OPERA America (email pfowler@usuo.org to receive this four-week tutorial) September 22 – October 13 | FREE to our patrons

Partner Company Events – supported by themes found in Macbeth and other Shakespeare plays
• Stephanie Wilde – “Harmed” (art exhibit) September – October | Salt Lake Arts Center
• Slid Jam – “Proud to Be An American” (slide presentations centered on themes of scandal and patriotism) September 23 | 6:30 pm | Salt Lake Arts Center
• Forum – Business Ethics October 7 | 6:30 pm | Salt Lake Arts Center
• Ballet West – “The Dream” (featuring A Midsummer Night’s Dream) October 30, 31 & November 4-7 | call 810-323-6900 to purchase tickets

Locations
Abravanel Hall: 123 West South Temple
Capitol Theatre: 50 West 200 South
The City Library: 210 East 400 South
Libby Gardner Hall: 1395 East Presidents Circle @ University of Utah
Utah Opera Production Studios: 336 North 400 West
Elizabeth’s Bakery & Tea Shop: 575 South 700 East
Salt Lake Art Center: 20 South West Temple

]]> Thu, 13 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=108 The Opening of the Utah symphony’s 70th Season Features an All Beethoven Program

Guest conductor Matthias Bamert will lead the orchestra in Beethoven’s exhilarating 5th Symphony as well as his Violin Concerto and Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus

SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Symphony returns to the stage of Abravanel Hall for its 70th season (sponsored by UBS) with an all Beethoven program led by guest conductor Matthias Bamert. The performances will be held on Friday, September 11th and Saturday, September 12th at 8:00 pm and feature virtuosic violinist Jennifer Frautschi. In celebration of the opening of the 2009-2010 season, an elegant gala will be held on Friday, September 11th at 6:00 pm at the Marriott Downtown.

“The opening of a new season is always an exciting time. There is an electric energy that fills the hall at the first concert and we are looking forward to sustaining that energy all year long,” said President and CEO Melia Tourangeau.

The opening weekend program begins with Beethoven’s Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus, which comes from the ballet depicting the story of the shrewd and rebellious Greek god Prometheus. Next, Jennifer Frautschi (Avery Fisher career grant recipient) will join the orchestra for Beethoven’s lyrical Concerto for Violin in D Major, which has become one of the most glorious concerti for any instrument. The evening concludes with Beethoven’s enduring masterpiece and one of his most popular works, Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, featuring the famous and unforgettable four-note motif (ta-ta-ta-tum).

Matthias Bamert’s distinguished career started at the Cleveland Orchestra where he was Resident Conductor along side the then Music Director Lorin Maazel. Since then he has held Music Director positions with the Swiss Radio Orchestra, London Mozart Players, Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Associate Guest Conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. He has recently finished a highly successful period as Music Director of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra. Music Director of the London Mozart Players for seven years, he has masterminded a hugely successful series of recordings of works by “Contemporaries of Mozart\" which has already exceeded 50 symphonies. In 1999, the orchestra’s 50th anniversary year, he conducted them at the BBC Proms, in Vienna and at the Lucerne Festival and returned with them to Japan in January 2000. He has worked frequently in the concert hall and studio with such orchestras as the Philharmonia, the London Philharmonic and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, has appeared regularly at the London Proms, and often appears with orchestras outside London such as the BBC Philharmonic and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

Jennifer Frautschi has created a sensation in recent seasons with appearances as soloist with Pierre Boulez and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Christoph Eschenbach and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Festival, and at Wigmore Hall and Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival. She has also soloed in recent seasons with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Cincinnati Symphony, Kansas City Symphony, Louisville Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, and others. Selected by Carnegie Hall for its Distinctive Debuts series, Ms. Frautschi made her New York recital debut in April 2004. As part of the European Concert Hall Organization\'s Rising Stars series, Ms. Frautschi also made debuts that year at ten of Europe\'s most celebrated concert venues. Ms. Frautschi’s 2009-2010 season highlights include opening night with the Utah Symphony, as well as appearances with the Honolulu, Pasadena, and Toledo Symphonies, the Buffalo and Boulder Philharmonics, and the Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie in Germany.

In celebration of the opening of the Utah Symphony’s 2009-2010 season, a gala: Celebrate Music in the Community, will be held at the Marriott Downtown (75 South West Temple) on Friday, September 11th at 6:00 pm. All proceeds from this event will be directed toward the Education and Community Outreach programs of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera.

Tickets for the gala are $125 per person or $100 for a symphony season subscriber (performance tickets are sold separately) and can be purchased at (801) 533-NOTE (6683). Table sponsorships are also available.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $20-$55 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (2787), in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org. Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should call (801) 533-NOTE (6683). Ticket prices will increase $5 day of performance.

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Program
Ludwig van Beethoven – Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus, op.43
Ludwig van Beethoven – Concerto for Violin in D Major, op. 61
     I. Allegro ma non troppo
     II. Larghetto
     III. Finale: Rondo

           INTERMISSION

 Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, op. 67
     I. Allegro con brio
     II. Andante con moto
     III. Allegro
     IV. Allegro

 
Keeping the Music Alive Annual Fund Drive

Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) will be launching their Annual Fund Campaign, “Keeping the Music Alive,” in conjunction with the opening of the season in September.

“Community support makes it possible for USUO to continue to provide cultural experiences throughout the state of Utah and ensure that our symphony and opera performances feature world-class artists, both in the orchestra and through guests that grace our stages,” said Melia Tourangeau, President and CEO.

Donations can be made to the Annual Fund online at www.usuo.org, through pledge envelopes in the playbills or in the lobby of Abravanel Hall on performance nights throughout September and October.

 
UBS, Utah Symphony Season Sponsor

UBS is proud to continue as the season sponsor of the Utah Symphony through the 2009-2010 season. The firm has partnered with the Symphony since 2004.

Headquartered in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, UBS is a global firm providing services to private, corporate and institutional clients. Its strategy is to focus on international wealth management and the Swiss banking business alongside its global expertise in investment banking and asset management. In Switzerland, UBS is the market leader in retail and commercial banking.

UBS is a significant supporter of orchestral music globally. In addition to its season sponsorship of the Utah Symphony, the firm currently sponsors several outstanding symphony orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra. These partnerships reflect UBS\'s dedication to supporting the communities where it operates, as well as a philosophy of working collaboratively with its clients to deliver the customized solutions that help them pursue their goals.]]> Tue, 04 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=106 2009 Utah charities Golf Challenge Donates a Portion of Proceeds to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) has been chosen as one of the charities to receive a portion of funds generated by the 2009 Utah Charities Golf Challenge. Sponsored by the Utah Families Foundation and hosted by Senator Orrin Hatch and his wife Elaine, the tournament will be held August 16 -18 at the new Jack Nicklaus Signature Course at Red Ledges in Midway, as well as Wasatch Mountain State Park. Donations made to charities will depend on the overall proceeds raised by the Utah Charities Golf Challenge, and checks will be presented at a reception on August 18th.
]]> Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=96 The Utah Symphony offers free summer concerts to thank communities for supporting ZAP funding

Concerts will be held in Salt Lake, Taylorsville, West Valley City and Sandy

ZAP concert on July 8th will benefit The Road Home and feature news weatherman Sterling Poulson conducting one of the selections


SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Symphony will offer four free performances around the Salt Lake valley this summer to thank communities for supporting the Salt Lake County Zoo Arts and Parks Fund (ZAP). The Utah Symphony’s \"A Link with the Past\" featuring pieces by Williams, Holst and Copland will be held in Taylorsville on Monday, June 29th, West Valley City on Tuesday, June 30th and Abravanel Hall on Wednesday, July 8th. A performance titled \"Let’s Dance\" featuring marches by Sousa and Strauss will be held in Sandy on Wednesday, July 15th. Each program will be lead by the Utah Symphony\'s Assistant Conductor David Cho.

For the second year in a row, the Utah Symphony will proudly partner with The Road Home for the ZAP concert on Wednesday, July 8, 2009 to raise donations and create awareness about homelessness. The performance will be free to attend and employees from The Road Home will be at Abravanel Hall giving out information and accepting donations (100% of proceeds will go to The Road Home). KUTV 2News’ senior meteorologist Sterling Poulson will join the orchestra to conduct Gould’s American Salute.

ZAP CONCERTS (free of charge)

June 29 (Monday), 8 pm, Taylorsville Regional Park
FREE
A Link with the Past
David Cho, Conductor

June 30 (Tuesday), 8:30 pm, Utah Cultural Celebration Center, West Valley
FREE
A Link with the Past
David Cho, Conductor

July 8 (Wednesday), 7:30 pm, Abravanel Hall
FREE
A Link with the Past Benefiting the Road Home
David Cho, Conductor

Sterling Poulson, Conductor
July 15 (Wednesday), 8 pm, Sandy Amphitheater
FREE
Let’s Dance
David Cho, Conductor

About the Road Home

The Road Home is a private non-profit 501(c)(3) organization providing assistance to people who are homeless in Salt Lake County and along the Wasatch Front.  Their mission is to help people step out of homelessness and back into the community. The Road Home serves 31 families, 300 single men and 74 single women daily at the main facility. The facility is in operation 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. During the 2006-07 fiscal year, The Road Home provided a total of 222,581 nights of shelter to 3,862 unduplicated individuals through all of their shelter programs.

]]> Wed, 06 May 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=95 The Utah Symphony bids farewell to Keith Lockhart and presents Bernstein’s Mass at Abravanel Hall

Keith Lockhart concludes his tenure as Music Director of the Utah Symphony with this long-awaited masterpiece.

SALT LAKE CITY – After 11 years, Keith Lockhart will step onto the podium at Abravanel Hall for the last time as Music Director to lead the Utah Symphony in a grand production of Bernstein’s Mass. The performances will be held at Abravanel Hall on Friday, May 29th and Saturday, May 30th at 8 pm. These performances will not only conclude Maestro Lockhart’s tenure, but the 2008-2009 season as well. 

Subtitled, “Theater Piece for Singers, Players and Dancers,” this rarely staged-performance will include over 200 performers including vocal soloists (John McVeigh will portray the Celebrant), the Utah Symphony Chorus, the Madeleine Choir School and dancers.

Leonard Bernstein composed Mass on commission for the opening night ceremonies of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and upon the request of Jacqueline Kennedy (by then married to Aristotle Onassis) in memory of her late husband. The piece explores the crises and restoration of faith with themes of pain, doubt, torment and peace. 

Although the piece follows the liturgy of a Mass, Bernstein interrupts the customary text to elaborate and comment upon a particular point. Unlike a traditional Requiem Mass, Bernstein includes folk songs, jazz numbers, Broadway-style songs, church hymns, plainchant, marches and orchestral interludes to a total of 32 individual pieces. 

Bernstein provided this summary of what transpires in Mass: “The ritual is conducted by a young man of mysterious simplicity (called the Celebrant) who throughout the drama is invested by his acolytes with increasingly ornate robes and symbols which connote both an increase in the superficial formalism of his obligation and of the burden that he bears. There is a parallel increase in the resistance of his Congregants – in the sharpness and bitterness of their reactions – and in the deterioration of his own faith. At the climax of Communion, all ceremony breaks down and the Mass is shattered. It then remains for each individual on the stage to find a new seed of faith within himself through painful Meditation, enabling each individual to pass on the embrace of peace to his neighbor. The chain of embrace grows and threads through the entire stage, ultimately with the audience and hopefully into the world outside.”

Conducting the piece for the first time in his last performance as Music Director, Keith Lockhart said, “Leonard Bernstein’s Mass is one of the greatest masterpieces of our time and for most people, this will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Although Mass questions faith at one point, it is ultimately a piece about redemption through renewed faith and to understand it fully, you must see it live. The combination of the visual and musical experience will touch everyone in the audience in a personal and individual way.”

Throughout his time with the Utah Symphony, Maestro Lockhart has led the orchestra in achieving many milestones. He has enhanced the presence of the orchestra both nationally and internationally through its first European tour and first recording in over two decades. He recorded three Salute to the Symphony television specials broadcast regionally on ABC/4 Utah, one which won an Emmy Award. He also recorded a special for PBS with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. In February 2002, Maestro Lockhart conducted the Utah Symphony in a performance during the opening ceremonies of the Salt Lake City Olympic Games. He was also instrumental in launching the Deer Valley® Music Festival, which made organization accessible to a wider audience.

One of the most significant and greatest milestones for Maestro Lockhart was the restoration of the Mahler tradition which he completed with Mahler’s 9th Symphony in April, 2009. Maurice Abravanel and the Utah Symphony earned national recognition as the first American orchestra to record all of Mahler’s symphonies. Some of Mahler’s symphonies hadn’t been performed by the Utah Symphony since Abravanel was conductor. Maestro Lockhart will assume the title of Music Director Emeritus when he completes his tenure.

“Maestro Lockhart will be sorely missed by the orchestra, staff and community. In his 11 years as Music Director, he has been a valiant leader and visionary. He has expanded the orchestra’s year round presence and always provided music at the highest artistic quality. We look forward to a long continued relationship with Keith and anxiously await his guest conducting appearances as our Music Director Emeritus.” said Melia Tourangeau, President and CEO.

Tickets for the evening’s performances are $16-$51 and can be purchased by calling (801) 355-ARTS (355-2787), 1-888-451-2787, in person at the Abravanel Hall box office, or by visiting www.utahsymphony.org.  Subscribers and those desiring group or student discounts should also call (801) 533-NOTE (533-6683).  

Press photos available at http://www.utahsymphony.org/media.php.

Subscribe to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s RSS Feed at: http://www.utahsymphony.org/feed.xml

Program         

UTAH SYMPHONY

BERNSTEIN: MASS
A Theater Piece for Singers, Players and Dancers
May 29 - 30 | 8 PM
Abravanel Hall


ARTISTS 
John McVeigh ~ Celebrant                    
Jonathan Savastano* ~ Boy Soloist
Deron Parcell* ~ Boy Soloist Cover
Utah Symphony Chorus
Madeleine Choir School
Lindsay Duerfeldt ~ Dancer
Robert Goodman ~ Dancer
Whitney Huell ~ Dancer
Kaleigh Schock ~ Dancer

* Chorister of The Madeleine Choir School

ARTISTIC STAFF
Conductor ~ Keith Lockhart
Stage Director ~ Michael Scarola
Choreographer ~ Patrick O’Neill
Stage & Lighting Designer ~ Matthew Antaky
Rehearsal Pianists ~ Jason Hardink, Carol Anderson
Stage Manager ~ Jill Krynicki
]]> Tue, 07 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=88 Utah Symphony | Utah Opera Addresses Economic Challenges

USUO to reduce operating costs by $1 million during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 fiscal years.

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) today announced a comprehensive plan to address the economic challenges the company faces in light of the current economy. Anticipating a shortfall in the 2008-09 fiscal year, USUO will reduce operating costs by nearly $1 million of its $19 million annual operating budget and will examine further opportunities for savings in 2009-10.

These efforts have been achieved through the teamwork of the entire USUO family – the musicians, administration, artistic staff, Music Director Keith Lockhart and the Board of Trustees.

“Every organization needs to make significant adjustments in this economy, and Utah Symphony | Utah Opera is no exception,” says Melia Tourangeau, President & CEO. “Since October, we have been looking very carefully at everything we do and making necessary adjustments to assure we remain fiscally sound. Our staff, board and musicians have rallied together and made a unified commitment to work collaboratively to find solutions to the challenges we face.
 
Utah Symphony musicians ratify waiver in the second year of the current collective bargaining agreement:

On Thursday, March 26, 2009, the musicians of the Utah Symphony voted to give back 11.5% of their salary and benefits in the 2008-09 fiscal year to Utah Symphony | Utah Opera. Their contribution includes donating two full weeks of salary, the first of which will be the week of April 5-11, 2009, the second of which will be during the Deer Valley Music Festival. They will also be contributing half of their pension contribution, one week of floating vacation, and a portion of their personal days. The financial value of these contributions is over $400,000. The musicians and management are in the second year of a three year collective bargaining agreement. The musicians are represented by their union, the American Federation of Musicians, Local 104, AFL-CIO. This agreement was made through a cooperative partnership between the Utah Symphony management, the musicians and their union and is a product of healthy collective bargaining. In July 2009, the negotiating committee will meet with management to evaluate the situation for the 2009-10 fiscal year. 

“The musicians of the Utah Symphony, represented by Local 104 AFM, are making their contribution toward the perpetuation of this fine organization. The Utah Symphony is one of our local arts organizations that creates and reflects the essence of our community. I firmly believe that periods of financial duress must be addressed and weathered-in this case, with across-the-board sacrifices and a business plan- to preserve what is truly a community gem,” said Erich Graf, Principal Flute of USUO.

USUO reduces administrative costs:

On February 2, 2009, the administrative and artistic staff of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera made a comprehensive cut in salaries and benefits for the remainder of this fiscal year. Ms. Tourangeau and Music Director Keith Lockhart led the initiative taking a 10% salary cut, followed by the rest of the staff who also took salary reductions, and all 403b employer pension contributions were suspended for the remainder of the year. In addition, eight full-time positions were eliminated either through attrition or layoffs. The total cuts equate to 14.5% or $500,000 with an annualized savings of $1 million for the 2009-10 fiscal year. 

“The commitment and dedication this staff has to making this organization great has always impressed me. They persist to strive for excellence, even during these difficult times,” said Keith Lockhart, Utah Symphony Music Director. He adds, “The 2009-10 season will continue the legacy of providing the quality of performances our community has come to expect. My personal hope is that all who come to our performances will be moved and experience something unique and special.”

The Board of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera increases giving for the 2008-09 fiscal year:

As of April 3, 2009, the 38 member board of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera has surpassed its internal fundraising goal from board member personal gifts. Currently the board has 100% participation in the 2008-09 Annual Fund and has increased their giving to the company from last year. In addition, the board has personally committed their leadership towards meeting the $6.7 million fundraising goal, which includes a special Leadership Challenge of $1 million. The Leadership Challenge Campaign is a four year initiative to raise a minimum of $5 million above regular fundraising efforts to help the company until the economy stabilizes and recovers. Currently, USUO is about two thirds of the way to their fundraising goal this fiscal year. Two lead gifts for the Leadership Challenge have been secured and other proposals are pending.

“The musicians, artistic staff and administration have demonstrated great leadership in the sacrifices they are making to help sustain us through the greatest economic challenge of our lifetime. The board has led in their commitment as well. We as a community must now step forward to preserve these treasures which are a part of our cultural heritage and vital to the quality of life which distinguishes Utah as a great place to live,” said Pat Richards, USUO Board Chair.

Increased support from patrons:

The community continues to support Utah Symphony | Utah Opera. The company has celebrated 13 sell-out performances during the 2008-09 season. Earned ticket revenue is projected to surpass the goal for the season and represents a 6% increase from the 2007-08 season. In addition, subscription renewals for the 2009-10 season are extremely strong. The company has attracted over 200 additional donors than last season at this time and fundraising is in line with last year.

Working towards the future:

In response to the changed economic environment, USUO is revising its strategic plan to look at new ways of doing business and delivering services to the community. The five year business plan focuses on an innovative revenue model of patron development and expands our efforts to increase sustainable contributed income.

“Utah Symphony | Utah Opera has a deep history and a bright future,” says Tourangeau. “During this turbulent time we are continuing to invest our resources wisely in order to increase our patron and audience base.” Tourangeau adds, “We are prepared to do what is necessary to get to the other side of this deep valley and with the help of our supportive community, we know we will get through this uncertain time.”


]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=82 UTAH SYMPHONY ANNOUNCES 2009-2010 SEASON
Maestro Matthias Bamert opens the season with Beethoven’s triumphant 5th Symphony on Friday, September 11, 2009.

MUSICAL HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SEASON
Favorites include: Beethoven’s 5th Symphony and Violin Concerto, Verdi’s Requiem, Brahms’ 4th Symphony and 1st Piano Concerto and Mahler’s Titan
Guest artists include: Jean-Philippe Collard, Baiba Skride, Julie Albers, Will Hagen Leila Josefowicz, Colin Currie and Stephen Hough
Guest Conductors include: Pinchas Zukerman, Matthias Bamert, Larry Rachleff, Thierry Fischer, Keith Lockhart, Klauspeter Seibel, Christopher Seaman, Andrew Litton and Carlo Rizzi
Utah Symphony Soloists: Lori Wike, Ralph Matson and Jason Hardink

ENTERTAINMENT SERIES HIGHLIGHTS WITH PRINCIPAL POPS CONDUCTOR JERRY STEICHEN
Cirque de la Symphonie
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
The Temptations

SPECIAL EVENT
Play! A Video Game Symphony

SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Utah Symphony today announced their complete 2009-2010 season offerings which will feature many talented guest conductors as the search for a new Music Director continues. The Utah Symphony’s 70th season will open on Friday, September 11, 2009 when Maestro Matthias Bamert leads violinist Jennifer Frautschi and the Utah Symphony in Beethoven’s Violin Concerto on a program that also includes Beethoven’s 5th Symphony as well as his Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus.

 “Although, we are still searching for a new music director, we are looking forward to experiencing the diversity and talent these individual guest conductors bring to the stage,” said Melia Tourangeau, CEO & President. “Along with the guest conductors, the orchestra is committed to providing music at the highest artistic level to give our audiences a world-class musical experience.”
 
One change to the 2009-2010 season will be the absence of the New Music Series as well as the Classical Chamber Series. Due to budget constraints, both series have been put on furlough and will be returning in upcoming seasons.

“Both series have been a pleasure for audiences and performers alike, but during this current economic situation, and in order to preserve the quality of our Masterworks programming, we’ve had to make the tough, but temporary decision to put them on hold,” said Jeff Bram, Vice President of Artistic Operations.

Subscriptions are now on sale and the prices will remain the same. For more information, please visit www.utahsymphony.org or call 801-533-NOTE. Tickets to individual concerts will go on sale to the general public on August 10, 2009.

MASTERWORKS HIGHLIGHTS
Eighteen Classical performances will feature guest musicians such as Jean-Philippe Collard, Baiba Skride, Julie Albers, Will Hagen, Leila Josefowicz, Colin Currie and Stephen Hough. The Masterworks Series (formerly Classical Series) will offer many highlights including Beethoven’s 5th Symphony and Violin Concerto, Verdi’s Requiem, Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade and Mahler’s Titan. Additionally, Maestro Pinchas Zukerman will return to conduct Brahms’ 1st Piano Concerto and Brahms’ epic 4th and final symphony.

ENTERTAINMENT SERIES HIGHLIGHTS
Formerly the Pops Series, the Entertainment Series will feature some unique and fun performances, such as Cirque de la Symphonie featuring some of the best cirque artists in the world, a performance by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and The Temptations. New Principal Pops Conductor, Jerry Steichen will be on hand to add his vivacious energy to the series.

FAMILY AND LOLLIPOPS HIGHLIGHTS
The highlight of the Utah Symphony’s Family series (formerly Discovery series), for ages 8-14, will be the second installment of “Cho’s Anatomy,” in which Associate Conductor David Cho will dissect Sibelius’ Fifth Symphony to help the audience understand the dynamic interaction of elements used in composition. The Lollipops Series (for ages 3 and up) will be highlighted by a program titled “Mini Magic Flute,” which will be a miniature version of Mozart’s operatic fairy tale.

SPECIAL EVENT
Due to the success of Video Games Live in 2008, the Utah Symphony will bring Play! A Video Game Symphony to Abravanel Hall in 2009. The Utah Symphony will perform memorable moments from video games like Final Fantasy®, Mario Brothers®, Zelda®, World of Warcraft® and many more.

SHAKESPEARE IN MUSIC FESTIVAL
Each year Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) presents a festival that bridges all forms of artistic expression, exploring how each defines the human experience. This season the theme, Shakespeare in Music, centers on Utah Opera’s production of Verdi’s Macbeth in October. USUO will collaborate with local museums, art galleries, libraries, film centers, performing arts groups and scholars to explore the rich works of Shakespeare.

VIVACE
Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s social and networking organization, Vivace, will offer five events in the 2009-2010 season. By purchasing special Vivace passes, patrons can enjoy discounted tickets, special program notes, after-parties with guest artists, great catering and the chance to mingle with musicians and guest artists. The series includes Utah Symphony performances on January 30, 2010 (Shostakovich’s Tenth), February 26, 2010 (Van Cliburn Gold Medalist), April 24, 2010 (Scheherazade) and Utah Opera performances on October 17, 2009 (McBeth) and May 15, 2010 (Suor Angelica & Gianni Schicchi).

FINISHING TOUCHES
The four-concert Finishing Touches Series will return in the 2009-2010 season. The concerts, which take place at 10:00 am, are a behind-the-scenes look at the orchestra during dress rehearsals. These daytime rehearsals will impress upon you the diligence and dedication that goes into each performance. They will take place on Friday, September 25, 2009 (Romeo & Juliet), Friday, January 29, 2010 (Shostakovich’s 10th), Friday, February 19, 2010 (Keith Lockhart & Julie Albers) and Friday, May 7, 2010 (Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto).

PRE-PERFORMANCE LECTURES
Pre-performance lectures offer insightful information about performances and take place 45 minutes before each classical concert in the Abravanel Hall First Tier Room.

CLASSICAL 89 BROADCASTS
Utah Symphony concerts are broadcast on Classical 89.1 each Saturday at 9:30 am and Thursday at 8:30 pm. A performance schedule is located at www.utahsymphony.org/broadcasts.

CLASSICAL GUEST ARTISTS
CONDUCTORS
Matthias Bamert (Sept. 11 & 12, 2009)
Julian Kuerti (Setp. 25 & 26, 2009)
Larry Rachleff (Oct. 9 & 10, 2009)
Emmanuel Villaume (Oct. 30 & 31, 2009)
Pinchas Zukerman (Nov. 6 & 7, 2009)
Jeffrey Kahane (Dec. 4 & 5, 2009)
Roberto Minczuk (Jan. 8 & 9, 2010)
Thierry Fischer (Jan. 29 & 30, 2010)    
Gilbert Varga (Feb. 12 & 13, 2010)
Keith Lockhart (Feb. 19 & 20, 2010)
Klauspeter Seibel (March 5 & 6, 2010)
Christopher Seaman (March 26 & 27, 2010)
Andrew Litton (April 9 & 10, 2010)
Garry Walker (April 23 & 24, 2010)
Claus Peter Flor (May 7 & 8, 2010)
Carlo Rizzi (May 28 & 29, 2010)

VIOLINISTS
Jennifer Frautschi (Sept. 11 & 12, 2009)
Baiba Skride (Jan. 29 & 30, 2010)
Ralph Matson (March 5 & 6, 2010)
Will Hagan (March 26 & 27, 2010)
Leila Josefowicz (April 16 & 17, 2010)

PIANISTS
Jason Hardink (Oct. 9 & 10, 2009)
Jonathan Biss (Nov. 6 & 7, 2009)
Stewart Goodyear (Jan. 8 & 9, 2010)
Jean-Philippe Collard (Feb. 12 & 13, 2010)
Stephen Hough (May 7 & 8, 2010)
Jean-Louis Steuerman (May 28 & 29, 2010)

CELLISTS
Julie Albers (Feb. 19 & 20, 2010)

BASSOON
Lori Wike (Sept. 25 & 26, 2009)

PERCUSSION
Colin Currie (April 23 & 24, 2010)

UTAH SYMPHONY CHORUS
Dec. 4 & 5, 2009
April 9 & 10, 2010

]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.utahsymphony.org/press.php?rid=83 UTAH OPERA ANNOUNCES 2009-2010 SEASON
The new season will feature the leading ladies of Verdi, Bizet, Rossini and Puccini

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Opera Artistic Director Christopher McBeth today announced Utah Opera’s complete 2009-2010 season offerings. The season opens in October with Verdi’s Macbeth, followed by Bizet’s Carmen in January and Rossini’s The Italian Girl in Algiers in March. In May, 2010, the season will conclude with a double-bill as Utah Opera presents the second and third of Puccini’s trio of one-act operas known as Il trittico: both Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi will be presented. Macbeth will open the 32nd season on October 17, 2009 at Capitol Theatre.
“With the 09-10 season, we’re excited to present the leading ladies of the great master composers,” says Christopher McBeth, Artistic Director of Utah Opera. “We have the dominant Lady Macbeth, the passionate Carmen, the hilarious Isabella in The Italian Girl in Algiers and the heart-wrenching Sister Angelica in Puccini’s Suor Angelica. With these powerful ladies, our season will be full of tragedy, romance, passion and humor.”

Subscriptions are now on sale. Information on becoming a Utah Opera subscriber is available by calling (801) 533-NOTE or by visiting www.utahopera.org. Tickets to individual concerts will go on sale to the general public on August 10, 2009.

FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

October 17, 19, 21, 23 | 7:30 PM &  25 | 2 PM Capitol Theatre
Macbeth by Giuseppe Verdi
Klauspeter Seibel, Conductor
Stephanie Sundine, Director
Louis Otey, Macbeth
Brenda Harris, Lady Macbeth

Macbeth is one of Giuseppe Verdi’s most honest, exhilarating, and fierce operas. Of Shakespeare, Verdi wrote, “I have had him in my hands from my earliest youth, and I read and reread him continually.” Witness in Macbeth one of Shakespeare’s strongest women, Lady Macbeth, pursue her path of ambition and manipulation. Verdi’s haunting music will keep you riveted as the story of the ferocious couple “trusting in the prophesies of hell” unfolds.  

January 16, 18, 20, 22 | 7:30 PM & 24 | 2 PM Capitol Theatre
Carmen by Georges Bizet
Ari Pelto, Conductor
Garnett Bruce, Director
TBA, Carmen
Chad Shelton, Don Josè
Christopher Feigum, Escamillo

Never before has love been so dangerously obsessive. In Utah Opera’s explosive interpretation of the classic opera Carmen, the lines between passionate illusion and real life become intricately tangled with rejection, jealousy, mutiny, and demise. Your senses will be awakened like never before, and never again will you experience Georges Bizet’s unforgettable gypsy in quite the same way.

March 13, 15, 17, 19 | 7:30 PM &  21 | 2 PM Capitol Theatre
The Italian Girl in Algiers by Gioacchino Rossini
Leonardo Vordoni, Conductor
Patricia Weinmann, Director
Leah Wool, Isabella
Rod Nelman, Mustafa
Daniel Belcher, Taddeo

If you enjoyed Utah Opera’s recent productions of The Barber of Seville and Cinderella, Gioacchino Rossini’s hilarious opera, The Italian Girl in Algiers, will delight you with a comic stumble of a shipwreck, missing lovers, jealous wives, and meddling servants. Rossini\'s energetic melodies and hilarious characters will have you laughing from curtain up to curtain down.

May 15, 17, 19, 21 | 7:30 PM &  23 | 2 PM Capitol Theatre
Suor Angelica & Gianni Schicchi
By Giacomo Puccini
Susanne Sheston, Conductor
Kathleen Belcher, Director
Kathryn Cowdrick, Angelica
Michael Wanko, Gianni Schicchi

Suor Angelica takes you through a heart wrenching tale of piety, passion, and penance. You’ll be at the edge of your seat as you experience the love only a mother can possess. Puccini brings us, once again, his soaring melodies, and gripping vocal lines in a score that will rival your favorite works.

Gianni Schicchi is a satirical farce and one of the funniest operas you\'ll ever experience, packed with comedic elements such as money-grubbing relatives, fake deaths, and a frantic family. Highlighting the score is one of the best-known and most beloved arias, “O mio babbino caro.”

]]>