Music for a Summer Night at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center

Last night I attended a free Utah Symphony concert at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center and it was a lovely evening for listening to music under the stars (one of my favorite summer activities).  The program was an eclectic one featuring composers and pieces celebrating the Americas.  It included Toast of the Town Overture by Quinn Mason, El Cumbanchero by Rafael Hernandez, Starburst by Jessie Montgomery, Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman by Joan Tower, Four Novelletten by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland, Fanfare on Amazing Grace by Adolphus Hailstork, selections from Othello Suite by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Danzon No. 2 by Arturo Marquez, Cachita by Rafael Hernandez, Huapango by Jose Pablo Moncayo, and "Techno" from Fiesta! by Jimmy Lopez.  I really enjoyed all of these pieces but my very favorite was Fanfare for the Common Man because it is instantly recognizable and the themes played by the brass and the percussion, especially the timpani and the gong, are both dramatic and majestic (despite the name).  The crowd really loved Danzon No. 2 because the rhythms were infectious!  Associate conductor Benjamin Manis was practically dancing on the podium and I particularly liked the seductive solos played by the woodwinds and a playful theme by the piano.  The concert concluded, as summer concerts often do, with an encore featuring The Stars and Stripes Forever by John Philip Sousa and this got the crowd on their feet clapping along.  The cute little ladies sitting next to me were thrilled when the piccolos and the brass sections stood for their solos.  It was such a fun night!  This same program will be performed again tonight at the Waterfall Amphitheater at Thanksgiving Point.  Tickets are required for this concert (go here) but there will be fireworks afterwards!  Also, last night's concert was the first in a series of free concerts every Monday night during the summer at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center (go here for more information) sponsored by West Valley Arts.

The Force Awakens in Concert

Last night I got to see The Force Awakens while the Utah Symphony played the score by John Williams live and it was so much fun!  Seeing this on the big screen again brought back memories of the excitement I felt when it was first released and hearing the music performed by the orchestra was such an immersive experience!  The First Order has risen from the ashes of the Empire and a new group of Resistance fighters emerges to defeat them, including Finn, a stormtrooper with a conscience, Poe Dameron, a daring pilot, and Rey, a scavenger who gets drawn into an adventure when she meets a droid carrying a secret.  They are helped by Han Solo, Chewbacca, and General Leia Organa but their actions are thwarted by Kylo Ren, a former Jedi apprentice struggling between the forces of good and evil.  The near capacity crowd at Abravanel Hall exploded in cheers and applause when the first dramatic note of the instantly recognizable fanfare played during the opening crawl and the applause continued when Finn, Poe, Rey, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Leia (and the Millennium Falcon) appeared on screen for the first time.  I may or may not have screamed in an embarrassingly loud voice when Kylo Ren removed his helmet!  I really love the music in this movie because it incorporates a lot of the well-known themes from the previous movies, including the ones for Luke, Han, and Leia, but also includes new themes for Kylo Ren, Rey, and Snoke.  I especially love it when the score transitions back and forth between Kylo Ren's theme and Rey's theme during their light saber duel on Starkiller Base.  I also really like the thrilling themes when Rey and Finn escape from Jakku in the Millennium Falcon, when the Resistance arrives on Takodana, and when the Resistance attacks Starkiller Base.  I enjoyed every minute of watching the movie and listening to the music and, if you have never attended a film in concert with the Utah Symphony, I highly recommend it.  The movies for next season are Black Panther, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, Frozen, and Casablanca.  Go here for information on subscribing to the Films in Concert series.

Fischer's Farewell: Mahler's Symphony No. 3

Last night's Utah Symphony concert, while absolutely brilliant, was a little bit bittersweet for me because it was the final opportunity to see Thierry Fischer conduct the orchestra as the Music Director (I am holding out hope that he will return as a guest conductor at some point).  I have been attending Utah Symphony concerts for more than 30 years and Fischer is my favorite conductor (followed by Pavel Kogan who was the principal guest conductor for several years) because he has such a light touch and brings out the very best from the orchestra without a lot of theatricality.  For his final performance, Fischer selected Symphony No. 3 by Gustav Mahler and, in my opinion, it was the perfect choice because it is such a monumental piece about creation and he has done such a wonderful job of helping the orchestra create a distinctive sound.  The women of the Tabernacle Choir, the choristers of Madeleine Choir School, and mezzo-soprano Anna Larsson joined the Utah Symphony for this amazing piece and I loved it!  According to Fischer, the first movement is about the invisible forces within a planet and I especially loved all of the dramatic fanfares by the brass, particularly those by the solo trombone and the solo trumpet, along with the timpani (there are two sets of timpani used in this piece and I was fascinated by how many times the musicians changed mallets).  The second movement is meant to mimic the appearance of flowers and trees and is much more delicate with a beautiful melody by the oboe.  The third movement introduces birds and other animals and I loved all of the woodwinds and the trumpet solo played off stage.  The fourth movement is when man arrives and it features a powerful text by Nietzsche about the nature of mankind sung as a simple melody by Larsson (who has a beautiful voice).  The two choirs join the orchestra in the fifth movement and represent angels who watch over mankind.  I loved hearing the children's choir imitate the sound of bells along with the chimes.  Many believe that the sixth movement is Mahler's vision of Heaven and I really enjoyed the beautiful themes played by the swelling strings and then the triumphant notes played by the timpani (I couldn't take my eyes of the musicians because it was so thrilling).  The audience immediately erupted into a thunderous standing ovation for Fischer (he also received one when he took the stage) and he appeared to become emotional as he hugged Concert Master Madeline Adkins and acknowledged all of the section leaders.  I admit that I had a tear in my eye, too!  This was a spectacular conclusion to the 2022-2023 season (which has been stellar) and the remarkable tenure of Maestro Fischer!

Note:  The 2022-2023 season may be over but there are still plenty of opportunities to hear the Utah Symphony perform this summer.  There are community concerts (several of which are free) in June, the Deer Valley Music Festival in July (I can't wait for the Music of Queen), and a state tour in August (these concerts are free but require a ticket).  Go here for tickets and more information.

Messiaen's Turangalîla

Last night's Utah Symphony concert was absolutely spectacular!  The entire program consisted of an 80-minute performance of Turangalîla-Symphonie by Olivier Messiaen and it was incredibly dramatic to say the least!  The title of the piece comes from two Sanskrit words which, when combined together, mean love, joy, time, movement, rhythm, life, and death.  I especially enjoyed the use of a large percussion section (I loved the gong and the chimes) featuring nine different musicians!  Utah Symphony Principal Keyboard Jason Hardink was a featured soloist on piano and Augustin Viard joined the orchestra on the ondes Martenot (he is one of only a few musicians who can play this instrument, which sounds a lot like a theremin, and it was flown in from France just for this concert).  It is comprised of ten separate movements but there are several themes that appear throughout.  My favorite themes were the "statue" theme, which is represented by the trombones and tuba and is incredibly powerful, and the "flower" theme, which consists of two clarinets and is very delicate.  They are often entwined together and are meant to represent the masculine and feminine, especially in the first and third movements.  The "love" theme includes a beautiful melody played by the strings and the ondes and this is incredibly ethereal in sixth movement.  Another theme involves chords played by the piano in opposition to the rest of the orchestra and this is energetic and almost frenzied, particularly with the percussion in the seventh movement.  Hardink's performance was brilliant with several very demanding solo cadenzas and I loved watching his fingers flying up and down the keyboard.  Viard was also really fun to watch on the ondes because I could never really figure out what he was doing.  He was definitely using the keyboard but he was also controlling the sound of the notes with the movement of his fingers.  Whatever he was doing, it looked and sounded really cool!  This piece was completely over-the-top and, while it was sometimes overwhelming to me, it was definitely thrilling!  It is not performed very often because of the orchestra personnel required so, if you are intrigued, you should definitely get a ticket to tonight's performance (go here).

Ravel, Rachmaninoff & Strauss

Last night's Utah Symphony concert featured three amazing composers (this season has been so great) and I thoroughly enjoyed every piece on the program.  The orchestra, under the baton of guest conductor Kevin John Edusei, began with La valse by Maurice Ravel.  This has been described as a tribute to the waltz and depicts the rise and fall of the musical genre with allusions to post-World War I Europe.  I pictured 19th century couples whirling around an opulent ballroom in an Imperial court.  The orchestration is incredibly lush and I especially loved a variation played by the brass and timpani culminating in the crash of cymbals and another one featuring two harps.  Next came Isle of the Dead, a piece by Sergei Rachmaninoff inspired by a monochromatic reproduction of a painting by Swiss artist Arnold Bocklin, and, of course, I absolutely loved it!  It is a very atmospheric and foreboding depiction of a small boat carrying a figure shrouded in white as it approaches a desolate island in the middle of dark waters.  The music is somber and otherworldly and I enjoyed the sound of oars rowing in the water evoked by the strings, timpani and harp.  After the intermission, the orchestra performed Duet Concertino for Clarinet and Bassoon by Richard Strauss with Principal Clarinet Tad Calcara and Principal Bassoon Lori Wike as soloists.  This was absolutely delightful because it is believed to be about a dancing princess, represented by the clarinet, who becomes alarmed when a bear, represented by the bassoon, begins imitating her until he wins her over and they dance together which turns the bear into a prince.  The themes played by the two soloists (Calcara and Wike give amazing performances) together are so fun and playful and I also enjoyed the themes played by soloists in each string section.  The concert concluded with the Suite from the opera Der Rosenkavier by Richard Strauss.  This opera is about a love triangle between a nobleman named Octavian who falls in love with a young girl named Sophie while carrying on an affair with the wife of a Field Marshall and features several beautiful waltzes which represent the elegance of a bygone era.  My favorite sequence in the Suite, when Octavian presents a silver rose to Sophie, features a delicate theme played by flutes, violins, harps, and the celesta.  It was a lovely evening of music and I definitely recommend getting a ticket for tonight's performance of the same program (go here).

Note:  I was checking hockey scores surreptitiously during every break in the performance.  My Colorado Avalanche are driving me crazy right now!

Sibelius' Symphony No. 5

Last night's Utah Symphony was so much fun because, not only did the program feature Sibelius (one of my favorite composers), but I was able to meet up with my friend Angela and we both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  When I was on a tour of Scandinavia several years ago I kept seeing statues of a man all around Helsinki so I decided to ask our bus driver who it was (we had bonded over a Finnish hockey player named Teemu Selanne who played briefly for the Colorado Avalanche).  He said it was Jean Sibelius and, when I didn't recognize the name, he was shocked and appalled that I didn't know about Finland's national treasure so he played Finlandia for me.  I absolutely loved it and, when the Utah Symphony programmed it the following season, I made sure to get a ticket and I always try to see it every time it is performed.  The orchestra began with this piece last night and I found it just as stirring as the first time I heard it!  This piece was composed to rouse Finnish patriotism against Russian control and it features epic themes by the brass, woodwinds, and timpani and ends as a hymn of triumph.  Next the orchestra was joined by Emmanuel Pahud for the U.S. premiere of a flute concerto called Lux Stellarum by Erkki-Sven Tüür (the front man of one of Estonia's most popular rock bands).  This piece is incredibly cool because it is meant to evoke the expansive nature of space.  The flute represents falling stars and the rest of the orchestra represents the explosion of faraway galaxies.  I really enjoyed themes played by the brass, because they reminded me of whispers, and the themes played by the piano, because they sounded like wind.  The use of lots of different percussion instruments (my favorites were the gong and chimes) sounded to me like the ripples of energy through space.  The themes by the solo flute are incredibly ethereal and I loved watching Pahud play because he moved his body with the music almost as if he was dancing with his flute!  He received a boisterous standing ovation which is really impressive because Utah Symphony audiences sometimes have a tepid response to more modern pieces!  After the intermission, the concert concluded with Symphony No. 5 by Sibelius.  This piece was commissioned by the Finnish government in 1915 to commemorate the composer's fiftieth birthday and it is incredibly majestic.  I loved the themes played by the horns and echoed by the woodwinds during the first movement because it is meant to depict a sunrise and also the so-called "swan's song" in the final movement played first by the horns and then the trumpets because it mimics the sound of sixteen swans taking flight at once.  The six chords separated by silence that end the piece are incredibly dramatic!  This was another wonderful concert in a season full of brilliant performances and I highly recommend getting a ticket for tonight's concert featuring the same program (go here for tickets).

Florence Price's Piano Concerto

I had been looking forward to last night's Utah Symphony concert for quite some time because Shostakovich was on the program (you know how I love the Russian composers) but I was also blown away by the first two pieces!  The orchestra began with Elegia Andina by Gabriela Lena Frank and I loved this moody and atmospheric piece!  The composer was inspired by Peruvian folk music but, to me, it sounded like a thunderstorm with temple blocks imitating the sound of raindrops falling in the aftermath and dueling flutes and clarinets imitating birdsong.  Next came Piano Concerto in One Movement by Florence Price and I also really loved this piece!  Price was a brilliant composer but she didn't commanded the respect she deserved because she was an African American woman.  However, when the score for the Piano Concerto was discovered at her abandoned summer home in 2009, it brought her some well-deserved recognition because it has had many performances over the past few years.  The orchestra was joined by the amazing Michelle Cann, who is a champion of Price's works, for a sparkling rendition of it.  Even though there is only one movement there are three very distinct sections.  The first is incredibly romantic and passionate, the second is slow and lyrical with a beautiful theme played by the solo piano and an oboe, and the third is jaunty and playful (it reminded me of ragtime).  Cann performed it with so much emotion and expression and I loved watching her (the only thing that could distract me from her fabulous gown and the diamond clip in her hair was seeing her fingers flying up and down the keyboard).  The audience exploded into cheers and applause so she gave a marvelous encore featuring a jazz arrangement of Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C sharp Major by Hazel Scott (which I, of course, loved).  After the intermission came Symphony No. 10 by Dmitri Shostakovich which is absolutely epic (in my opinion, any piece that features the gong is automatically epic).  Many believe it is in response to the terror of Stalin's reign with a conclusion that depicts the ultimate triumph of the individual over tyranny.  There are beautiful and wistful themes played throughout by the various woodwinds which represent Shostakovich and violent and urgent themes by the strings, brass, and percussion (the aforementioned gong is spectacular) which represent Stalin and are quite unsettling.  Luckily, Shostakovich is the winner in this battle of wills in the powerful conclusion!  The orchestra was under the baton of guest composer Tito Munoz and I enjoyed watching him lead the orchestra through a wonderful performance that I highly recommend!  Go here for tickets to tonight's concert which features the same program.

Thierry Fischer Conducts Bruckner 5

Last night's Utah Symphony concert was really exciting because Maestro Thierry Fischer was back on the podium (for the first of his final four appearances as music director of the symphony) and he led the orchestra in a brilliant performance of Symphony No. 5 by Anton Bruckner.  I had never heard this piece before but it was very dramatic, to say the least, and I loved it!  The first movement begins very softly and slowly and then builds and builds into a powerful conclusion.  The second movement features a plaintive theme introduced by a solo oboe and then continues with variations by the strings, which are incredibly beautiful, and by the brass.  The third movement alternates between a menacing theme and a slow pastoral theme and they compete for dominance and then kind of meld together.  The opening notes of the fourth movement mirror those of the first and then there is a jaunty theme played by the solo clarinet (which I absolutely loved) that is echoed by the strings and then becomes a fugue where the instruments seem to be chasing each other.  The movement concludes with the repetition of all of the various themes found throughout the piece and it was absolutely epic!  I really loved the emotion and, even though I am not as knowledgeable about the structure of music as I would like to be, I enjoyed the fact that I could recognize all the themes that were being repeated!  This is the only piece on the program (it is 76 minutes long) and it will be performed again tonight (go here for tickets).

Dvorak's Symphony No. 5

I always love it when I have a Utah Symphony concert to look forward to during the week and the one last night was especially worth the anticipation because I was swept away by the music of Bruch and Dvorak.  The orchestra began with Ringelspiel by Ana Sokolovic and it pains me to say this but I didn't particularly care for this piece.  I appreciate that the composer meant to mimic the disoriented and dizzy feeling that one has while riding on a merry-go-round but most of the time it just sounded like noise to me, especially a section where it seemed like everyone was playing a different note (it was so jarring).  This hardly mattered because I absolutely loved the next piece as well as the soloist!  Randall Goosby joined the orchestra for Violin Concerto No. 1 by Max Bruch and he was brilliant!  I loved the themes played by the solo violin because they are passionate in the first movement, melancholy and filled with longing in the second movement, and intense in the third movement.  I also really enjoyed the orchestral background because it is incredibly lush but Goosby has such a magnetic stage presence that I couldn't take my eyes off him and all of my attention was focused on his dazzling performance.  The audience literally erupted with thunderous applause so he performed "Louisiana Blues Strut" by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson as an encore!  After the intermission, the concert concluded with Symphony No. 5 by Antonin Dvorak.  I had never heard this piece before but I'm glad I had the chance last night because it is so emotional and romantic!  I always love it when the woodwinds are prominently featured and the themes played by the clarinets in the first movement are beautiful.  My favorite movement was the second because it has the feel of a Bohemian folk dance with a lyrical theme played by the cellos and then echoed first by the violins and then the woodwinds.  The final movement includes a tender dialogue between the clarinets and violins and another between the flutes, oboes, and violins followed by a triumphant conclusion from the brass.  It was another wonderful evening at Abravanel Hall and I highly recommend getting a ticket for tonight's performance of the same program (go here for tickets).

Note:  Yesterday I renewed all of my subscriptions (Masterworks, Films in Concert, and Opera) for the 2023-2024 season without even knowing what will be programmed!  That is how much I love attending Utah Symphony concerts (and Utah Opera performances).

An American in Paris in Concert

I love the movie An American in Paris so I was positively giddy with excitement to see it on the big screen while the Utah Symphony performed the score by George and Ira Gershwin last night!  Who could ask for anything more?  Jerry Mulligan (Gene Kelly) is an American ex-GI who decides to stay in Paris after the war to study painting.  One day he meets a lovely Parisian shopgirl named Lise Bouvier (Leslie Caron) and they immediately fall in love while dancing along the Seine.  However, Lise is engaged to Henri Baurel (Georges Guetary) and feels that she can't break her engagement because he kept her safe during the war.  Jerry also feels indebted to his sponsor, an American heiress (Nina Foch) who is in love with him, because she is helping him sell his paintings.  It takes an incredible dream sequence with Jerry and Lise dancing through Jerry's paintings of Paris for them to realize that they belong together.  I loved hearing the orchestra play all of those wonderful Gershwin songs, including "Embraceable You," "Nice Work If You Can Get It," "I Got Rhythm," "Love Is Here to Stay," "I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise," and "'S Wonderful."  However, my favorite moments from the score were Concerto in F for Piano and Orchestra and the American in Paris ballet.  The former is a piece that Adam (Oscar Levant), a composer living in the same building as Jerry, daydreams that he is performing and it is hilarious because he is also the conductor, several musicians, and members of the audience but I was too busy watching the same musicians in the Utah Symphony mimic him (especially the gong and the timpani) in those moments.  The latter is the music used during the extraordinary 17-minute ballet which is said to represent George Gershwin's impressions as an American visitor walking the streets of Paris and I especially loved the themes played by the oboe and horns.  I say this after every performance in the films in concert series but this was so immersive and I loved that the audience applauded after every number!  It was wonderful!

Note:  I had so much fun at this concert but I honestly cannot wait for the next one, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, because I get to hear "Kylo Ren Arrives at the Battle" performed live!  Go here for tickets.

Emmanuel Pahud Performs Mozart's Magic Flute Fantasy

Last night's Utah Symphony concert marked the return of Maestro Thierry Fischer to the podium and it was a wonderful and varied evening of music!  The orchestra began with Symphony No. 12 by Joseph Haydn.  It was performed with a smaller chamber group standing up and I really enjoyed it, especially the woodwinds in the first movement, the somber mood in the second movement, and the burst of energy from the strings in the third movement.  After this came Lyric Suite by Alban Berg.  This piece was inspired by Berg's intense infatuation with Hanna Fuchs-Robbetin.  In an attempt to keep the affair a secret from his wife and her husband, Berg included many secret codes and messages dedicated to her within the music.  It is very expressive and emotional with the first three movements getting progressively faster and the last three getting slower to depict the timeline of a forbidden affair that begins with passion and then ends in despair.  Next the orchestra was joined by the 2022-2023 Artist-in-Association Emmanuel Pahud as the soloist for Magic Flute Fantasy, an arrangement of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera The Magic Flute by Robert Fobbes.  This was very lively and playful and Pahud performed it beautifully with a bright and clear sound.  Fischer also got in on the action by playing the pan-flute to the delight of the audience!  After the intermission, Pahud joined the orchestra once again for Concerto for Flute and Orchestra by Carl Nielsen.  This piece is also very playful and I particularly enjoyed the dialogues between the flute and other solo instruments (especially the clarinet and the timpani).  The concert concluded in dramatic fashion with Sinfonietta by Leos Janacek.  This piece is an ode to Czechoslovakia which begins and ends with patriotic fanfares by the brass (featuring 12 trumpets, 2 bass trumpets, 4 trombones, 4 horns, 2 Wagner tubas, and a tuba) and timpani.  It was absolutely epic!  I love ending the week at Abravanel Hall with the Utah Symphony and last night's concert was especially enjoyable!  Tickets for tonight's performance of the same program may be purchased here.

Carmina Burana

Last night's Utah Symphony concert was truly spectacular and I recommend that you stop reading right now and get a ticket for tonight's performance of the same program as soon as possible because there weren't many empty seats at Abravanel Hall!  The orchestra began with Feuertrunken (Fire-Drunk) by Joshua Cerdenia and I really loved this piece.  It was inspired by Dante and depicts the journey through a wall of fire to get from purgatory to paradise.  It is intense, energetic, and exciting and I particularly enjoyed the themes played by the brass, the percussion (especially the timpani and the bass drum), and the harp.  Next came The Firebird suite by Igor Stravinsky and, as a fan of Russian composers, I loved this as well.  This ballet is based on a series of Russian folktales and features a Firebird that is captured and then released by Prince Ivan and then later recalled to break the evil spell holding thirteen princesses prisoner by King Kastchel.  I especially loved the melody played by the solo oboe, horn, and viola during the Firebird's Dance of Supplication where she pleads with Prince Ivan to let her go and I loved the theme played by the violins and woodwinds during the Dance of the Princesses.  After the intermission, the orchestra performed Carmina Burana by Carl Orff with the Utah Symphony Chorus, the University of Utah Choirs, the Choristers of the Madeleine Choir School, and soloists Christopher Clayton, Jack Swanson (who recently sang the role of Tonio in The Daughter of the Regiment), and Ashley Fabian.  The music is unbelievably dramatic and I had goosebumps through most of it.  The text, which is based on a collection of medieval poetry, describes a wheel of fortune as it turns and features themes of luck and fate during several sections.  My favorite is the well-known "O Fortuna," which frames the piece at the beginning and end, because it is so bombastic and powerful.  The first section is about the rebirth found in Spring and I enjoyed the playful theme played by the solo flute depicting the whirling of dancing couples.  The second section is about feasting, drinking, and debauchery and the interactions between Clayton and Swanson (who impersonates a swan being roasted over a fire) had the audience laughing out loud!  The third section represents romantic love with incredibly tender solos by Clayton and Fabian (along with some encouragement from the children's choir).  This piece is epic and, trust me, you definitely do not want to miss this brilliant performance!  Go here for tickets.

Elgar's Enigma Variations

Last night I went to my first Utah Symphony concert of 2023 and it was certainly a good one!  The concert began with a contemporary number called Near Midnight by Helen Grime and, according to the composer, it is a moody and atmospheric piece about the reflection and introspection that occurs when when one day moves into the next.  I really liked the chimes used throughout to represent the tolling of the hour.  The orchestra continued with Scottish Fantasy by Max Bruch with Concertmaster Madeline Adkins as soloist.  This piece was inspired by several different Scottish folk songs and, as someone with Scottish heritage, I loved it!  I was especially moved by the first movement, which is based on the song "Auld Robb Morris," because it is quite mournful and features a duet between the solo violin and the harp (performed brilliantly by Louise Vickerman who is Scottish).  I also liked the second movement, which is based on the song "Dusty Miller," because it is very lively and I could picture people dancing.  I am always impressed by Adkins (I met her very briefly at a Utah Symphony after party and she was really cool) and it was fun to watch her because her performance was so passionate (I also enjoyed watching Vickerman).  After the intermission, the orchestra concluded with the Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar which is such an amazing piece.  It came about, as the story goes, when Elgar sat at the piano after a long day and began to play a theme that he made up on the spot.  His wife really liked it and asked him to play it again.  He then began playing it again and again as different sketches representing some of their friends and he had her guess who each one was.  It was really fun to listen for the central theme in each variation and, like most people, my favorite one is "Nimrod," which is based on Elgar's friend August Jaeger, because it is incredibly somber and evocative, but very beautiful (it was played at Princess Diana's funeral), and the timpani rolls get me every time!  I love hearing Christmas music but it felt really good to be back at Abravanel Hall for a Masterworks concert!  I highly recommend getting a ticket (go here) for the same program tonight!

The Nightmare Before Christmas in Concert

Last night I got to see the movie The Nightmare Before Christmas while the Utah Symphony played the score by Danny Elfman live and it was so much fun!  I usually think of this as a Halloween movie (it is one of my favorites and I watch it at Halloween every year) but it also works really well for Christmas and this concert was a great way to start the holiday weekend!  Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King and leader of Halloween Town, is getting bored with scaring everyone with the same old tricks every year so, when he accidentally discovers Christmas Town while wandering through the woods, he decides that Christmas is a more appealing holiday and that he should take it over this year.  He has the best trick-or-treaters in Halloween Town, Lock, Shock, and Barrel, kidnap Santa Claus, assigns the rest of the residents the job of making toys, which are terrifying, and delivers them with a disastrous result.  Will Santa Claus be able to escape from the Oogie Boogie and save Christmas in time?  Only Tim Burton could dream up such a macabre, yet strangely enchanting, world filled with quirky characters brought to life with brilliant stop-motion animation.  The sold-out crowd at Abravanel Hall was in a really festive mood and there were cheers and applause when each character first appeared on the screen (the Mayor of Halloween Town got the loudest applause), when Jack first visits Christmas Town, when Sally escapes from Dr. Finkelstein, and when Jack rescues Santa and Sally from Oogie!  Hearing the Utah Symphony play Danny Elfman's iconic score was such an immersive experience!  I especially enjoyed the chimes in "This is Halloween" (the people around me sang this song out loud), the themes played by the brass in "What's This?" and "Kidnap the Sandy Claws," the themes played by the woodwinds in "Making Christmas" and "Oogie Boogie's Song," and the plaintive melody played by the strings in "Sally's Song."  I thoroughly enjoyed all of it!  I don't think I will ever tire of Utah Symphony's Films in Concert series because attending these performances has become one of my favorite things to do!  The next Film in Concert will be An American in Paris (go here for tickets) and I can't wait!

A Soulful Holiday with the Utah Symphony

This holiday season I have been incredibly lucky to be able to see some wonderful Christmas concerts!  I had an opportunity to see another one with the Utah Symphony last night and it was amazing!  The orchestra was joined by Broadway star and former member of Postmodern Jukebox Morgan James.  She has a very classic soul sound and I loved her bluesy arrangements of Christmas songs (I was definitely tapping my toes throughout the concert).  The orchestra began with a medley of Christmas songs called "A Christmas Festival" and then James took the stage with a sultry rendition of "Cool Yule."  She continued with "White Christmas" and then performed an original song written for her Christmas album A Very Magnetic Christmas (so-called because it was recorded on analog tape) called "Long as I Got You."  She mentioned that she didn't think a Christmas concert was complete without the next song and I immediately hoped that it would be "O Holy Night."  I was absolutely thrilled when I heard the opening notes (I agree with her assessment).  This was the third time that I have been able to hear my favorite Christmas song this season and her rendition was brilliant because she built to a powerful conclusion (including timpani!) that just about blew the roof off of Abravanel Hall!  James took a break to change into another fabulous vintage gown (the second of four) while the orchestra played "Waltz of the Flowers" from Nutcracker Suite by Tchaikovsky.  James returned to the stage with "This Christmas" and then performed my favorite song of the evening, "River" (I love Joni Mitchell).  She concluded her first set with a lively version of "Winter Wonderland."  After the intermission, the orchestra performed "Sleigh Ride."  I've heard them perform this before and my favorite part is when the trumpet mimics the neighing of a horse at the end while the player wears the head of a horse!  James continued with "Do You Hear What I Hear?" and "Everyday Will Be Like a Holiday" after which the orchestra performed the Suite from Polar Express.  In her final set, James explained that she chose the songs "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," "The Christmas Song," and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" because they reminded her of her childhood and she hoped that we all had happy memories of Christmas, too.  She concluded with "All I Want For Christmas" because it has now become the most popular Christmas song of all time!  James was really personable and quite funny and when she returned to the stage after thunderous applause, she told us that she didn't have anything planned and then immediately began "What Are You Doing For New Year's Eve?" as an encore!  It was a great night!

Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No.2

Last night's Utah Symphony concert was so phenomenal that I had goosebumps the whole time!  The guest conductor for the evening was David Robertson, who is very popular with both audiences and the orchestra, and I loved watching him on the podium because he was so expressive!  The first piece on the program was The Chairman Dances: Foxtrot for Orchestra by John Adams.  This is an outtake from Adams' opera Nixon in China and it depicts a dance between Madame Mao and Chairman Mao after the latter climbs out of his portrait and comes to life.  What I loved about this piece is how Adams plays with rhythm and tempo because it sometimes seems as if she is enticing him seductively and at other times they are dancing energetically.  I also really enjoyed the jaunty themes played by the brass!  Next, pianist Behzod Abduraimov joined the orchestra for Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Prokofiev.  This piece is considered to be one of the most technically difficult piano concertos in the repertoire and Abduraimov performed it brilliantly.  The piece is incredibly dramatic and I especially loved the first movement because it begins with a melody that becomes more and more intense and then the piano takes over for a cadenza that is as much fun to watch as it is to listen to.  Then the orchestra joins the piano once again with so much force that it is almost overwhelming (the brass!) until the piano ends the movement with a soft repetition of the melody.  It is so tempestuous and emotional!  The audience (and Robertson) responded with thunderous applause at the end of it!  The rest of the piece is just as spectacular and I also enjoyed a very melancholy theme in the final movement followed by an explosive ending!  I loved this performance so much (I feel like I was holding my breath through most of it) and I was amazed watching Abduraimov's fingers flying up and down the keyboard!  After the intermission, the concert concluded with Symphony No. 1 by Dmitri Shostakovich.  This piece was written as a requirement for graduation from the Leningrad Conservatory and it is very inventive.  I love the themes played by the woodwinds (particularly the solo clarinet) in the first movement, the dramatic themes played by the brass in the second movement, the solo cello in the third movement, the snare drum roll at the beginning of the fourth movement, and the epic fanfares that end the symphony.  I was blown away by this concert and I definitely recommend getting a ticket for the same program tonight (go here for tickets).

Celtic Woman: A Christmas Symphony

One of my favorite things about this time of year is being able to hear Christmas music performed live.  I was, therefore, absolutely thrilled to be at Abravanel Hall last night for a Christmas concert with Celtic Woman and the Utah Symphony!  Celtic Woman is an Irish musical ensemble currently composed of violinist Tara McNeill and vocalists Megan Walsh, Muirgen O'Mahony, and Hannah Traynor.  Their crystal clear soprano voices sounded amazing with the acoustics in Abravanel Hall and their arrangements of both classic and contemporary Christmas songs were incredibly lush with the Utah Symphony backing them.  They performed as a group and individually and their set included, "Ding Dong Merrily On High," "Angels We Have Heard On High," "Do You Hear What I Hear," "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," "Deck the Halls," "The Toys' Waltz," "White Christmas," "Amid the Falling Snow," "I Saw Three Ships," "Carol of the Bells," "The Christmas Song," "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear," "Danny Boy," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and "Sleigh Ride."  McNeill performed a beautiful instrumental version of "What Child Is This"  and the group was joined by a piper (hearing bagpipes gets me every time) for "Amazing Grace" and "We Three Kings."  I always hope that I will hear "O Holy Night" (my favorite Christmas song) performed live at least once during the holiday season and this year I have been lucky enough to hear it twice because Celtic Woman sang a lovely version (I especially loved the harp used in this arrangement).  Even though I got to hear my favorite song, my favorite performance was "Wexford Carol" because it was incredibly ethereal and their voices blended together so beautifully!  They ended the concert, appropriately, with a rousing rendition of "Auld Lang Syne" which featured the pipes once again.  I am sure that this concert will be a highlight of the season for me because it was simply glorious and I'm so glad that I got to go!

Beethoven's Fifth

There was a huge crowd at Abravanel Hall last night because the Utah Symphony performed one of the world's most famous symphonies and it was amazing!  The orchestra began, however, with a piece called Fires by a young Lithuanian composer named Raminta Serksnyte.  It was moody and atmospheric (it sounded like the score of a movie set in space) and kept building and building in intensity.  I loved the chimes, the brass, and the dramatic timpani!  Next, the orchestra was joined by soloist Maximilian Hornung for Cello Concerto No. 1 by Dmitri Shostakovich.  I always think of music for the cello as mournful but the first movement of this piece was very lively and energetic.  The second movement was a bit more subdued, with beautiful themes played by the solo cello and the woodwinds, but the third and fourth movements returned to a more vibrant pace and the concerto definitely ended with a flourish!  Hornung was so much fun to watch and I loved it whenever he would bob his head in time with his bow!  As an encore, he performed a beautiful version of Cello Suite No. 1- Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach (I was very proud of myself for recognizing it).  After the intermission the orchestra played the piece everyone was waiting for, Symphony No. 5 by Ludwig van Beethoven, and the performance was brilliant, especially since guest conductor Markus Poschner did not use a score!  Those iconic and instantly recognizable opening notes are incredibly dramatic (I have heard them referred to as fate knocking on the door) and I enjoyed listening to all of the variations of this theme throughout the first movement (and the rest of the symphony).  I also enjoyed the stately themes played by the whole orchestra, but especially the horns and the woodwinds, during the second movement.  Whenever I hear the third and fourth movements I always imagine goblins because there is a scene from the movie Howards End where one of the main characters goes to a lecture on music and meaning and the conductor describes goblins during this section (clearly I have seen this movie too many times).  Whether it is about goblins or not the symphony ends triumphantly and I loved hearing it!  I highly recommend getting a ticket for tonight's performance of the same program (go here for tickets).

Note:  I've said it before but the current Utah Symphony season has been absolutely spectacular!

Bernadette Peters with the Utah Symphony

I cannot believe that I actually got to see the incredible Bernadette Peters perform with the Utah Symphony last night!  It is a concert that I will not soon forget because it was basically a love letter to Broadway, especially for fans of Stephen Sondheim!  The first half of the concert featured the orchestra under the baton of Lee Mills.  They performed Cole Porter Salute, Three Dance Episodes from On the Town by Leonard Bernstein, and Salute to the Big Bands and I enjoyed these pieces very much.  After the intermission, Bernadette Peters took the stage with her music director Joseph Thalken and began with "Old Friends" from the musical Merrily We Roll Along and continued with "No One Is Alone" from another Sondheim musical, Into the Woods.  Then she performed incredibly sultry versions of "There Is Nothing Like a Dame" from South Pacific (which involved quite a bit of flirting with one of the cello players) and "Fever" (while reclining on top of the piano).  She talked about listening to her parents' Rodgers & Hammerstein records when she was young and said that her favorite was Carousel before singing a lovely version of "(When I Marry) Mister Snow" from the show and then the Rodgers & Hammerstein song "It Might As Well Be Spring" from the movie State Fair.  She returned to the music of Sondheim by singing "In Buddy's Eyes" and "Losing My Mind" from Follies, "Johanna" from Sweeney Todd, and "Children Will Listen" from Into the Woods.  She recently starred as Dolly Levi in Hello, Dolly! on Broadway and gave a poignant performance of "Before the Parade Passes By" and a really playful performance of "So Long Dearie."  Her emotional rendition of "Send in the Clowns" from A Little Night Music by Sondheim was definitely the highlight of the concert for me because it was absolutely amazing and gave me goosebumps!  Her final number, "Being Alive" from Company by Sondheim, was equally amazing and prompted an enthusiastic standing ovation!  She returned to the stage to perform "Kramer's Song," a lullaby she wrote for her charity Broadway Barks, as an encore.  To say that I loved this concert would be an understatement and I am so glad that I got to see this Broadway legend!  She will be back with the Utah Symphony again tonight (go here for tickets) and I highly recommend getting a ticket!

Stephen Hough Performs Rachmaninoff

Last night I got to hear Stephen Hough, one of my favorite soloists, perform Rachmaninoff, one of my favorite composers, with the Utah Symphony and it was simply amazing!  Before the Rachmaninoff the orchestra played two pieces by Richard Wagner and I really enjoyed them both.  The first was the Overture to Tannhauser, an opera about a Medieval singer and songwriter named Tannhauser who has a virtuous maiden and a goddess vying for his love.  The music portrays his downfall into the profane and then his redemption and I found it, like much of Wagner's music, to be incredibly stirring, especially the themes played by the brass.  Next came Das Rheingold which serves as the prologue to the operas in the Ring cycle.  The piece begins with a long and sustained note from the basses which is then joined by the oboes then the horns and, finally, by the rest of the orchestra as it builds and builds.  This is meant to represent the depths of the Rhine River which hides the gold that is eventually used to make a ring to rule the world and it is quite dramatic.  I loved the sudden climax of this note followed by the introduction of the ring theme played by the woodwinds.  I also loved all of the percussion, especially the use of anvils which represents the enslavement of the Nibelungs, and the four harps which represent the churning of the Rhine in the epic conclusion.  It was so cool!  I would really love to see the Ring cycle someday (it is definitely a bucket list item).  I spent the entire intermission anticipating what was to come because I love Rachmaninoff!  Piano Concerto No. 3 by Sergei Rachmaninoff is considered by many to be the most difficult piano piece in the repertoire but Hough made it look easy with his fingers gliding up and down the keyboard at the speed of light!  I think this piece is incredibly moody and atmospheric and I especially love the main theme, which is introduced by the piano in the first movement and then repeated in variations by the orchestra throughout, because it is so quintessentially Russian.  It is very melancholy but also dignified!  I also love the romantic theme played by the piano in the second movement because it becomes increasingly more passionate and, of course, the conclusion is unbelievably exhilarating!  I loved this performance because Hough was absolutely brilliant and, as always, I highly recommend getting a ticket for the same program tonight (go here for tickets).