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Utah Symphony and Utah Opera is offering a great deal for out-of-town skiers — and a few locals.

Symphony and local tourism officials today announced a new incentive program, an "apres-ski" discount that would let anyone showing a same-week lift ticket from a Utah ski resort to get best-seat-in-the-house symphony or opera tickets for $35 — a discount of up to $60.

"This epitomizes and legitimizes our claim that this is Ski City," said Scott Beck, president and CEO of Visit Salt Lake, at the announcement event at Abravanel Hall.

Locals who buy single-day lift passes can take advantage of the program, said Utah Symphony | Utah Opera marketing director Renee Huang, but season passes aren't eligible. "We're focusing on the visitor experience," Huang said.

Melia Tourangeau, president and CEO of US|UO, remarked that Utah's skiing helped persuade several of the Utah Symphony's 85 musicians to move here. "It's a great recruitment tool for us, and great for economic development," Tourangeau said.

Violinist David Porter attested to that. Porter recalled when he first came to play with the Utah Symphony from Minnesota 18 years ago, cellist John Eckstein took him skiing at Solitude.

"I was in jeans, I had no skill at all, but I was immediately hooked," Porter said. Porter added that he takes pride in the fact that he has only missed one-half of one rehearsal because he was stuck at Alta.

Porter said he often talks with out-of-state skiers, and they ask about things to do in the city after skiing. This discount, he said, "will help my conversations on the ski lift."

Porter and Eckstein, along with flutist Mercedes Smith and violist Brant Bayless kicked off today's announcement, entertaining the media and ski-industry representatives by performing part of a Mozart concerto — all wearing ski wear.

Vicki Varela, managing director of the Utah Office of Tourism, praised the discount ticket plan, citing it as a strong follow-up to the symphony's "Mighty 5" tour of Utah's national parks this summer. "You have created a demand for the symphony product that this [discount] just builds on," Varela said to US|UO officials.