Music Director Thierry Fischer to Lead Utah Symphony in Mahler's Symphony No. 7, 1/8-9

Maestro Thierry Fischer leads the Utah Symphony during a performance featuring the music of Austrian composers Mozart and Mahler on January 8-9 at 7:30 PM at Abravanel Hall. The concert will not only feature famous masterpieces from two great composers, but also shine a light on the modern violin talent Augustin Hadelich.

Tickets, priced from $18 to $79, are available for purchase through www.utahsymphony.org or by calling (801) 355-2787.

The Utah Symphony's Mahler Symphony Cycle, paying homage to Maurice Abravabel's legacy and vison during the 75th anniversary, continues at this performance with Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 7, also sometimes referred to as "Song of the Night." The Utah Symphony performed Mahler's first four symphonies in the 2014-15 season, and will conclude the two-year cycle with Mahler's Symphony No. 9 on May 27 and 28. Under the baton of Maestro Abravanel, the Utah Symphony became the first American orchestra to record all of Mahler's symphonies. The performance of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 1, "Titan," recorded live in Abravanel Hall in September 2014, was released September 2015 on Reference Records.

Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 4 will be featured in the first half of the concert, showcasing world-renowned violinist Augustin Hadelich. Mr. Hadelich is a much sought after violinist who recently won the Warner Music Prize of a $100,000 cash prize awarded to a promising musician between the ages 18 and 35 who demonstrates exceptional talent and outstanding promise. Continuing to astonish audiences around the globe with his technique, poetic sensibility, and angelic tone, Mr. Hadelich's 2015-16 season includes debuts with the Chicago Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in Carnegie Hall.

The Washington Post raves, "The essence of Hadelich's playing is beauty: reveling in the myriad ways of making a phrase come alive on the violin, delivering the musical message with no technical impediments whatsoever, and thereby revealing something from a plane beyond ours."

The Utah Symphony under the direction of Maestro Thierry Fischer will present Mozart and Mahler on the Brigham Young University campus at the de Jong Concert Hall, Harris Fine Arts Center on Thursday, January 7 at 7:30 pm. For more information, visit arts.byu.edu/event/utah-symphony.

Utah Symphony | Utah Opera's education department has posted an online listening guide to the "Mahler Cycle" on the Utah Symphony website to provide people with information and insight into the composer and his famous symphonies. In advance of every Mahler symphony, an online listening guide by University of Utah School of Music's Dr. Bettie Jo Basinger filled with background materials and information movement by movement will be posted. Also included in the drop-down menu are audio clips and oral histories of former Utah Symphony musicians recalling Maestro Abravanel's work with the Mahler symphonies. For more, go to www.utahsymphony.org/the-mahler-cycle.

Utah Symphony Vice President of Artistic Planning Toby Tolokan offers a preconcert lecture prior to each performance starting at 6:45 PM in the First Tier Room at Abravanel Hall. Lectures are free to all ticket holders.

PROGRAM:

The Utah Symphony presents
Fischer conducts Mozart & Mahler

Abravanel Hall, 123 West South Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah
January 8-9, 2016 | 7:30 PM

Thierry Fischer, Conductor
Augustin Hadelich, Violin
Utah Symphony Orchestra

Mozart Violin Concerto No. 4

I. Allegro
II. Andante cantabile
III. Rondeau: Andante grazioso- Allegro ma non troppo

INTERMISSION

Mahler Symphony No. 7

I. Langsam- Allegro
II. Nachtmusik
III. Scherzo: Schattenhaft (Fliessend, aber nicht schell)
IV. Nachtmusik
V. Rondo- Finale: Tempo I (Allegro órdinario)
VI. Tempo II (Allegro moderato ma energico)

Tickets, priced from $18 to $79, are available for purchase through www.utahsymphony.org or by calling (801) 355-2787. Tickets increase $5 on the day of the performance.

Founded in 1940, the Utah Symphony performs more than 175 concerts each season and offers all Utahns easy access to world class live musical performances of the world's greatest music in the state's top venues. Since being named the orchestra's seventh music director in 2009, Thierry Fischer has attracted leading musicians and top soloists, refreshed programming, drawn increased audiences, and galvanized community support. In addition to numerous regional and domestic tours, including the Mighty 5 Tour of Utah's National Parks, the Utah Symphony has embarked on seven international tours and will perform at Carnegie Hall in Spring 2016 coinciding with the orchestra's 75th anniversary celebrations. The Utah Symphony has released more than 100 recordings, including the new release of Mahler Symphony No. 1 in Fall 2015. Utah Symphony | Utah Opera, the orchestra's parent organization, reaches 450,000 residents in Utah and the Intermountain region, with educational outreach programs serving more than 155,000 students annually. In addition to performances in its home in Salt Lake City, Abravanel Hall, and concerts throughout the state of Utah, the Utah Symphony participates in Utah Opera's four annual productions at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre and presents the six-week Deer Valley Music Festival each summer in Park City, Utah. With its many subscription, education, and outreach concerts and tours, the Utah Symphony is one of the most engaged orchestras in the nation. For more information visit www.utahsymphony.org.