By Ben Watson
On a beautiful summer evening under unsettled skies at Park City‘s Snow Park Amphitheater, the Utah Symphony brings together a program of familiar and not-so-familiar favorites, including the perennial high water mark of the Deer Valley Music Festival with 1812 Overture with Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2. Climbing the hillside, the air of anticipation and excitement was palpable amongst the sold-out crowd. The few drops of rain were quickly forgotten as the first notes sounded in the wonderfully cool mountain air.
Principal Conductor Connor Gray Covington opened the program with Festive Overture by 20th-century Russian composer Dimitri Shostakovich. Beginning with a bright brass fanfare, the piece resolves into a frenetic musical chase around the orchestra. This light-hearted work showcases the nimble talents of this adept ensemble, and lights the fuse perfectly for the fireworks to come.
Guest artist Stephen Beus joined the orchestra on stage and from the opening notes of the second piece, Piano Concerto No. 2 in c minor by another Russian, Sergei Rachmaninoff, the receptive audience responded to the bell-like strains of the introduction. This three-movement concerto, executed flawlessly, is a piano and orchestral masterpiece which has worked its way into popular culture. Beus is brilliant and energetic, and the video screens show his enthusiasm to great effect. The piano-centric first movement eases into an agitated development of theme with occasional piano accompaniment in the second. The third movement evokes feelings of “I’ve heard this somewhere else before” as its tonal exposition resolves. Covington’s enthusiastic and energetic leadership coaxes greatness out of the assembled artists, especially Beus.
Czech composer Antonin Dvorak’s Carnival Overture continues the lighthearted program, and lends a high-spirited tone to the Deer Valley Music Festival. Often referred to as “merry,” the overture is a celebration of syncopated rhythm and is at once contemplative and hilarious. Covington and his orchestra create a sense of dancing and joy, offset by a beautiful interlude of horn and flute. Covington’s comment that “we can all use a little more Dvorak in our lives” is absolutely appropriate.
Next up in the embarrassment of riches is “Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia” from Armenian composer Aram Khachaturain’s Spartacus ballet. Filled with folk-music scales and melodic structures that shimmer in the deepening twilight, the woodwind and percussion sections play games with the celebratory structure. This piece has wound its lyrical way into popular culture, and at one point I thought I heard an echo of John Williams’ Star Wars score.
What would a Deer Valley Music Festival be without the iconic 1812 Overture? The quintessential and stirring work by Russian composer P.I. Tchaikovsky tells a story of war and national unity, and builds gradually to the soaring power associated with this timeless masterpiece. The booming percussion, taking center stage due to fire restrictions and dry conditions precluding the usual live cannons, plays counterpoint to bells and horns. The interplay evokes the raging battle between Russian and French forces and the celebration of the Russian victory. Many in the audience were on their feet as the crescendo built to a climax, and the remainder of the crowd leaped quickly to a standing ovation as the last booming tones echoed from the now dark hills. If there ever was a question about how to stir an audience to emotional fanfare, this piece is the answer.
As the audience began to descend the hill, Covington and the Utah Symphony Orchestra launched into a wonderful encore of The Stars and Stripes Forever by John Phillip Sousa. The legendary American bandmaster’s glorious march kept the patriotic feeling overflowing as the audience remained on their feet and cheered. The oft heard piece, with its stirring piano and piccolo phrases, punctuated a brilliant evening of music in the mountains.
The Deer Valley Music Festival certainly lived up to the festival aspect with this quick-moving and engaging program. Concert goers were ebullient with praise as they descended the grassy slope of the Snow Park Amphitheater.
The final performance in this season’s Deer Valley Music Festival features The Beach Boys with The Utah Symphonyon August 6-7. Hurry to get tickets for this exciting conclusion to a festival that has brought so much joy to the arts community this year.
Utah Symphony Presents 1812 Overture with Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2
Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater, 2250 Deer Valley Dr S #501, Park City, UT 84060
Jul 31, 2021, 7:30 PM
Tickets: $15-78
www.usuo.org
www,deervalleymusicfestival.org
Contact: 801-533-5626
Utah Symphony Facebook Page
1812 Overture with Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 Facebook Event
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