Name: Sound and Silence
Start: 2025-05-17T19:30:00
Location: University of Utah

Dive into a mesmerizing journey with the Salt Lake Symphony, as they weave an enchanting tapestry of musical narratives throughout their upcoming season. From the heartwarming Christmas opera, 'Amahl and the Night Visitors,' to the vibrant 'Vienna Ball,' each event is a celebration of music and culture. Featuring collaborations with renowned artists, evocative compositions, and engaging family programs, this season promises to captivate audiences with a blend of tradition and innovation. Join us as we explore the highlights and unique experiences that await music lovers in Salt Lake City.

A Symphony of Seasons: Embracing Musical Narratives with Salt Lake Symphony

The Salt Lake Symphony presents a series of captivating events set against the majestic backdrop of Utah's cultural scene. From showcasing burgeoning piano talents to a grand Viennese ball, and from young musicians sharing the stage with maestros to introspective symphonic explorations—each event promises a unique cultural experience. Join us as we delve into the season's highlights, spotlighting the artists and performances that make this series unforgettable.

Harmonizing Artistry: A Season with the Salt Lake Symphony

Salt Lake Symphony is set to dazzle audiences with a series of exciting events that showcase emerging talents, timeless classics, and innovative performances. From the triumphant notes of the Summer Arts Piano Competition Winners concert to the elegant spectacle of the Vienna Ball, and the creative explorations in Musical Latitudes, the symphony presents an array of delightful experiences. The Spirit of Spring concert invites young musicians to shine alongside seasoned performers, while Sound and Silence offers a meditative journey through soundscapes. Explore the rich tapestry of culture and creativity at these unforgettable events.

A Symphony of Seasons: Celebrating Music and Dance in Salt Lake City

The Salt Lake Symphony invites you to a remarkable season filled with diverse musical events that promise to captivate audiences and celebrate artistic brilliance. From the promising talents of the Summer Arts Piano Competition to the grandeur of the Vienna Ball, each event offers a unique experience. Highlights include a collaborative performance of Borodin's Polovtsian Dances, the world premiere of a clarinet piece by Nadine Silverman, and an evening of sound exploration with Gorecki's Symphony No. 3. Join us for an unforgettable journey through music and culture.

Salt Lake Symphony's Upcoming Season: A Melodious Journey through Art and Culture

The Salt Lake Symphony is set to captivate audiences with an exceptional lineup of performances in 2025. From showcasing emerging talent in the Summer Arts Piano Competition, to the extravagant Vienna Ball, and a series of orchestral masterpieces including Beethoven's timeless symphony, the Symphony promises an unforgettable musical journey. As the calendar unfolds, each concert reveals a unique blend of culture, creativity, and artistry that defines Salt Lake's vibrant music scene. Prepare to be enthralled by the harmonious blend of tradition and innovation that the Symphony has crafted this season.

A Symphony of Seasons: Exploring the Salt Lake Symphony's 2025 Concert Series

The Salt Lake Symphony invites you to embark on a musical journey through three captivating events: 'Spirit of Spring,' 'Musical Latitudes,' and 'Sound and Silence.' Each concert promises a unique exploration of orchestral wonders, featuring both classic compositions and innovative premieres. With performances from celebrated musicians and immersive experiences that engage the senses, these concerts offer a profound connection to the world of music and its emotive power.

A Harmonious Journey: Salt Lake Symphony Explores Music and Emotion

The Salt Lake Symphony is preparing a spectacular series of concerts that promise to captivate and inspire. With the Spirit of Spring, Musical Latitudes, and Sound and Silence, these events showcase remarkable compositions and talented artists, each bringing their own unique flair to the stage. From Alexander Borodin's Polovtsian Dances to Gorecki’s Symphony No. 3, each concert features a thoughtfully curated selection of works, headlined by exceptional musicians like Hasse Borup, Laura Grantier, and Melissa Heath. Prepare to be transported through music, place, and emotion in these unforgettable performances.

A Symphony of Sound: Exploring the Spirit of Spring, Musical Latitudes, and Sound and Silence

The Salt Lake Symphony invites you on an unforgettable journey through music with its captivating series of orchestral events in 2025. Featuring youthful talent, world premieres, and unique sound explorations, these performances promise to engage and inspire audiences of all ages. From Borodin's stirring Polovtsian Dances to Gorecki’s haunting Symphony No. 3, each concert offers a distinct experience that embodies the essence of creativity, cultural depth, and the powerful communication of classical music.

A Symphony of Seasons: Exploring the Spirit of Spring, Musical Latitudes, and Sound and Silence

Melissa  Heath

Salt Lake Symphony Orchestra

Our 51st season opens with two audience favorites, the Variations on a Theme by Haydn by Johannes Brahms and the Sixth Symphony of Antonin Dvorak. Both are examples of the finest orchestral writing of the late 19th century, helping assure both composers of their place in history. The Variations are not, as advertised, on a theme by Haydn, yet Brahms and his publisher probably knew this. As the theme was believed by the public to be by the venerated composer, the name stuck (and likely helped sell the piece to audiences!). Dvorak’s Symphony no. 6 is an example of a composer at the top of his creative game, blending Czech folk elements with traditional symphonic writing to produce a wholly unique sound. Orchestras and audiences love both works, but they will also be enchanted by our opening piece, an overture to a little-known opera by Dame Ethel Smyth, an English composer not well known in America. Smyth was a fascinating woman, the first female composer to receive a damehood (the equivalent of a male being knighted). She also worked for the suffrage movement, even spending time in prison for her activities. Her Overture to the Wreckers is a wonderful example of late Victorian-era music, with hints of Edward Elgar, Arthur Sullivan and others, woven into a wholly original composition.

Two Classics and a Surprise!

University of Utah

Join the SLS at the culmination of our annual conducting workshop for an evening of Brahms and Elgar.

SLS Conducting Workshop Final Concert

Please note – the time of this concert is subject to change. The U of U vs. BYU football game may impact our concert time. Please be prepared to switch to a matinee at 2:00 pm should it be necessary. We will announce the concert time on our website and Facebook page. We will communicate with patrons via the email used to purchase tickets.

If you ask our music director who his favorite composers are, he’ll likely hem and haw and be non-committal. But our November concert certainly include three of his top five favorites. Mendelssohn’s The Hebrides (Fingals Cave) is perhaps the finest example of a Romantic-era work depicting landscape. One can hear the waves, sea spray, and even imagine the basalt rock columns that reminded the composer of a pipe organ. Baritone James Bobick joins us to sing Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer. These four orchestral songs stand on their own merit, but audiences may also hear that the melodies and orchestrations were source material for Mahler’s early symphonies. We end with a major staple of the symphonic repertoire, Sibelius’s grand and eloquent Symphony No. 2. The finale of the symphony was popular with the Finnish people as it was connected with the struggle for Finnish Independence, so much so that it was dubbed the “Symphony of Independence”. Written immediately after his popular Finlandia, Sibelius said of the work, “My second symphony is a confession of the soul.”

Music From the Mind’s Eye – Concert Time May Change

SNOW! Come celebrate what makes winter in northern Utah special as we perform a concert dedicated to the fluffy white stuff! The entire family will delight to Tchaikovsky’s Waltz of the Snowflakes, LeRoy Anderson’s Sleighride and more! The highlight of the evening will be a narrated showing of the movie “The Snowman,” conducted by our assistant conductor, Mike Trachalios. And of course, we will have the traditional sing-along to get everyone in the holiday spirit!

Snow Day! A Holiday Family Concert

The SLS demonstrates our commitment to music education in many ways, including the annual presentation of Summer Arts Piano Competition Winners. Come enjoy a weekend of Utah talent as we play selections of the great piano concerto repertoire with tomorrow’s stars. Tickets for this concert are available from the University of Utah School of Music.

Summer Arts Piano Concert

Dance the night away at our annual fundraiser for the Salt Lake Symphony. Dinner, dancing, a silent audition, all accompanied by live music from the Salt Lake Symphony and Mark Cheney jazz trio. Tickets on sale November 1, 2026!

39th Annual Vienna Ball

Winter’s browns and grays turn to spring’s blooms and greens in our March concert, all about transitions. Michael Torke’s Ash is a sonic ode to the color gray. Rachmaninov’s Isle of the Dead takes us on a ferry ride to the land of the “not living.” The composer was inspired by a black and white reproduction of Böcklin’s painting of the same title, which he saw at an exhibition in Paris. You’ll recognize the famous Dies irae chant throughout this reflective work. After intermission, spring is just around the corner with Lili Boulanger’s Ode to spring evening, D’un matin de printemps and Respighi’s monumental Pines of Rome, complete with the sounds of children playing, birdsong, Roman legions marching, and a reminder of those we’ve left behind in life’s winter.

Ide(a)s of March

A spirit of music and sharing is on display as the SLS welcomes a new collaboration with the Salt Lake Symphonic Choir for a performance of Poulenc’s Gloria. Opening the program is a recent work, Kauyumari, by award-winning composer Gabriela Ortiz. The title means “blue deer” in Huichol language, and refers to a spiritual guide that is encountered during a vision quest. We are also welcoming back a favorite concert pianist, Viktor Valkov in a rare performance of Shostakovich’s First Piano Concerto, a work that is more than “just a piano concerto.” The work also includes a prominent trumpet solo part, which will be played by our SLS principal trumpet, Michael Sullivan. Spirits will soar at this concert of collaboration.

Spirit Voyage

“Picture” this: an enthralling cello solo surrounded by the musicians of the Salt Lake Symphony in a program of Russian musical genius. It’s a great way to close the season as we perform Kabalevsky’s upbeat Overture to Colas Breugnon, followed by the stunning Sinfonia Concertante for Cello and Orchestra by Sergei Prokofiev, performed by cellist Michael Kaufman. Maurice Ravel’s orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition provides a great way to end our season and highlight this fantastic orchestra before we say, “Dasvidaniya” to our 51st season!

Russian Gems

Our final concert is an exploration of sound and silence. Our friend Phillip Bimstein will host the evening, and our very own Charlotte Bell will transform the pre-concert talk into a meditation and listening workshop. Gorecki’s powerful Symphony no. 3 with soprano Melissa Heath will provide the main sonic exploration of the evening, a work I have hoped to conduct for a long time. Prepare for a meditative and moving night with the Salt Lake Symphony, a concert unlike ever you have experienced before!

Sound and Silence

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