Ahead of Earth Day, NOVA Chamber Music Series to feature two new commissioned works from Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music’s Composing Earth project

NOVA Chamber Music Series’ final Libby Gardner series concert of the 2023-24 season is nicely timed for this month’s celebrations of Earth Day and the ever-intensifying focus on changes in the climate and environmental impacts. The concert will feature two new commissioned works, courtesy of Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music’s Composing Earth cohort. … Read more

With art and dance integrated, Laura Kaminsky’s Desert Portal set for exciting world premiere at NOVA Chamber Music Series’ March 10 concert

The programming for NOVA Chamber Music Series’ upcoming concert (March 10, 3 p.m., Libby Gardner Hall) is an “embarrassment of riches,” Robert Waters, Fry Street Quartet’s first violinist, said in a previous interview. The centerpiece of a marvelous offering of works spanning more than 130 years will be the world premiere of Laura Kaminsky’s Desert … Read more

Courage, creative fire, innovation, enterprise: The Utah Review’s Top 10 Moments of the Utah Enlightenment in 2023

This year’s selections in The Utah Review of the top ten moments of the Utah Enlightenment in 2023, the ninth annual edition, were the easiest to curate in the nine years of publishing this annual list. Likewise, selecting the top moment among the ten was just as easy. In Utah, there are creative producers in … Read more

More from a bountiful autumn season in performing arts: Fem Dance Company, Local Independent Theatre (LIT Co.) and NOVA Chamber Music Series

The fall performing arts season in Salt Lake City has been a bountiful harvest of enterprising programming. Featured reviews include Fem Dance Company, Local Independent Theatre (LIT Co.) and NOVA Chamber Music Series. FEM DANCE COMPANY: HEAR HER Earlier this month, Fem Dance Company’s premiere of Hear Her, choreographed by Alicia Ross, was an enlightening, … Read more

World premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank’s A Psalm of Disquiet by Fry Street Quartet set for Utah State University’s music school, NOVA Chamber Music Series

This week’s world premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank new string quartet A Psalm of Disquiet at Utah State University and then on Nov. 5 at NOVA Chamber Music Series in Salt Lake City, is yet another milestone in the flourishing relationship which the composer and Fry Street Quartet have developed over many years. “I have … Read more

Three performing art jewels in October: Repertory Dance Theatre’s I AM…, Aristo Sham at the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation, NOVA Chamber Music Series’ concert

October’s performing arts schedule was filled with many jewels, including Repertory Dance Theatre, the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation and NOVA Chamber Music Series. The reviews below:  REPERTORY DANCE THEATRE: I AM… One could not have asked for a more spectacular opener for Repertory Dance Theatre’s (RDT) 58th season than the premiere of Natosha Washington’s … Read more

Season opener review roundup: Pioneer Theatre Company’s Murder on the Orient Express, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Groundworks, Plan-B Theatre’s Squeak, NOVA Chamber Music Series on Hungarian music

PIONEER THEATRE COMPANY: MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express has remained resilient. It is surprising for a 1934 novel that more often than not has been denigrated by contemporary scholars of literature as lowbrow along with what they perceived as insensitive portrayals of cultural and ethnic stereotypes they contend … Read more

A look at some of the exceptional world-class musicians from Utah who will perform during NOVA Chamber Music Series’ 46th season, which starts Sept. 17

NOVA Chamber Music Series’ 46th season is all about personality, as noted previously in The Utah Review. The eight concerts for the 2023-24 season will showcase a generous sampling of the outstanding level of musicianship that exemplifies just how high the bar of artistic quality has been set in Utah. The Utah Review offers a … Read more

NOVA Chamber Music Series’ 2023-24 season will be personality-driven thrill ride with lots of surprising twists and turns

A prime reason why the NOVA Chamber Music Series consistently excels in its unique programming brand is demonstrating how the deep bench of world-class musical talent in Salt Lake City and throughout Utah can tackle just about any curveball a composer could conceive of throwing their way. For NOVA’s 46th season, the Fry Street Quartet, … Read more

Moments to shine: NOVA Chamber Music Series closes 45th season with spectacular Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, Repertory Dance Theatre’s Link Series presents Wind by John Mead and dancers

NOVA CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES: DAS LIED VON DER ERDE The clearest example of Thierry Fischer’s 14-year tenure as Utah Symphony’s music director is the significant improvement in the orchestra’s musicianship. Utah Symphony musicians are now prepared to take on everything in the orchestral repertoire, including new music commissions. Fischer is set to take a similar … Read more