Utah Symphony | Utah Opera

The Utah Symphony gave its first concert in Salt Lake City on May 8, 1940, as the Utah State Symphony Orchestra under Hans Henriot, and took its current name in 1946. The orchestra says it now has 85 full-time professional musicians who perform more than 175 concerts a season. This profile covers the symphony only. [1]

Maurice Abravanel was music director from 1947 to 1979 and, by the orchestra's account, built its national reputation through more than 100 recordings, international tours and a large school education program. His Mahler cycle for Vanguard was the first complete cycle recorded by an American orchestra, and he received the National Medal of Arts in 1991. Later music directors were Varujan Kojian, Joseph Silverstein, Keith Lockhart, who conducted the orchestra at the 2002 Winter Olympics opening ceremonies, and Thierry Fischer, who served from 2009 to 2023. [1]