Utah Symphony to Pay Homage to Viennese New Year's Waltzes and Marches, 1/2-3

The Utah Symphony rings in the new year with a musical homage to a classical tradition in Vienna, Austria. Maestro Thierry Fischer conducts a program featuring robust dance numbers and upbeat marches from Johann Strauss, Dimitri Shostakovich, Hans Christian Lumbye, and Johannes Brahms that is a rendition of the famed concert performed by the Vienna Philharmonic each New Year. Tickets, priced from $18 to $69 ($10 for students), are available for purchase through www.utahsymphony.org or by calling (801) 355-2787.

The New Year's Concert in Vienna started in 1939, right in the midst of World War II, under the baton of Clemens Krauss. It signified a shift in repertoire for symphony performances by bringing bourgeois music from private salons to the public concert hall setting. With an entire repertoire from Johann Strauss, the first concert was called "Johann Strauss Concert," and Strauss' music has headlined every show since then.

Annually performed in the morning on New Year's Day at the Musikverein Concert Hall in Vienna, the concert highlights polkas, waltzes and march music, all by Strauss. The main concert in Vienna highlights music from the Strauss family because at that time, the Strausses' dance music was the soundtrack of Viennese social life. Johann Strauss II is known as the "waltz king," and he wrote well-known waltzes including "Artists' Life," "The Blue Danube," and "Wine, Women and Song."

The concert is hugely popular in Europe (patrons must pre-register more than a year in advance for a drawing for a chance to get tickets) and is broadcast and televised all around the world.

The Utah Symphony's tribute version of this event will highlight dance numbers from various composers, most of which have a strong focus on percussion instruments. Listen closely during each piece for the glockenspiel, vibraphone, xylophone, tambourine, triangle, cuckoo and even a whistle and a cork.

"You have to reach a high level of comfort with the instruments and the orchestra before you can really make a waltz or march 'feel' good for everyone, which can take considerable time and concentration but is always rewarding when you finally achieve it. We also have some very exposed, tricky solos in the mallet instruments," says percussionist Keith Carrick.

"I like to joke with my family that I get paid to play a cuckoo whistle at work. Strauss actually wanted specific pitches on the cuckoo, which drives me crazy because it can be difficult to find the right whistle that's in tune," Mr. Carrick continued. "I also get to imitate a nightingale, and fire off a 'popgun' with a cork stuck in the end to imitate a bottle of champagne, which can be really tricky to reload in a hurry."

RELATED EVENTS:

Music Director Thierry Fischer and Vice President of Artistic Planning Toby Tolokan will present a free pre-concert chat for ticket holders each night at 7 p.m., one hour prior to the start of the performance on the orchestra level of Abravanel Hall (123 West South Temple).

This concert marks the fourth of the season for the Cadenza group, which offers seniors an opportunity to meet other likeminded music lovers in a social setting. Cadenza members eat together at local restaurants (around $30 for a three course meal) before Utah Symphony and Utah Opera performances and then sit together at the concerts. No need to bring a date or a friend, just come and enjoy the music and company!

Cadenza season tickets for the 2014-15 season are $152.50 (dinner costs are extra). Cadenza subscriptions for the 2014-15 season include the six concerts in the Masterworks A series on Friday nights and a Saturday night opera. Single tickets are also available to Cadenza at $35 per concert. Call 801-533-NOTE (6683) to purchase.

PROGRAM:

The Utah Symphony presents

New Year's in Vienna

Abravanel Hall, 123 West South Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah

January 2-3, 2015 | 8 p.m. Abravanel Hall

Thierry Fischer, Conductor

Dmitri Shostakovich: Festive Overture

Alexander Borodin: "Polovtzian Dances" from Prince Igor

Dmitri Shostakovich: Suite for Variety Stage Orchestra

INTERMISSION

Hector Berlioz: "Hungarian March" from La Damnation de Faust

Johann Strauss Jr.: Künstlerleben, Waltze

Hans Christian Lumbye: Champagner Galop

Wolfgang Rihm: "Sehnsuchtswalzer" from Drei Walzer

Johannes Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 5

Johann Strauss Jr.: Im Krapfenwald'l

Johann Strauss Jr.: Éljen a Magyar!, op. 332

Tickets, priced from $18 to $69 ($10 for students), are available for purchase through www.utahsymphony.org or by calling (801) 355-2787. Tickets increase $5 on the day of the performance.

About the Utah Symphony - Founded in 1940, the Utah Symphony is dedicated to offering orchestral performances that span the traditions of the past and challenge possibilities for our present and future audiences. 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. The orchestra presents more than 70 performances each season in Abravanel Hall, participates in the Utah Opera's four annual productions at the Capitol Theatre, in addition to numerous community concerts throughout Utah and the annual outdoor summer series - the Deer Valley Music Festival -- in Park City, Utah. With its many subscription, education, and outreach concerts and tours the Utah Symphony is one of the most engaged full-time orchestras in the nation. For more information visit www.utahsymphony.org.

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