Hilary Hahn came to Abravanel Hall Friday night and showed the near-sellout crowd exactly why she’s one of the two or three best-known violinists in the world. Not only does she possess flawless technique and captivating musicality, she carries herself with the authority of a queen.
Hahn, a frequent guest of the Utah Symphony since New Year’s Eve 1992 (when she was a 13-year-old prodigy), is playing the Dvorak Violin Concerto this time around. Her technical proficiency and the sheer beauty of her tone enthralled the audience.
The mighty ocean wave of orchestral accompaniment, led by music director Thierry Fischer, occasionally verged on overbearing, but Hahn always had enough power to surf over the top. She encored with a flawless performance of the gigue from Bach’s E Major Partita.
Fischer dealt a wild card in the concert’s first half: the world premiere, as it were, of a suite by Dvorak and Haydn. He alternated movements from Haydn’s Symphony No. 8 (“Le soir”) with six of Dvorak’s Slavonic Dances. Solo turns from cellist Rainer Eudeikis, concertmaster Madeline Adkins, violinist Claude Halter and bassist David Yavornitzky highlighted this lively symphonic shuffle.
Utah Symphony<br>Music of Antonín Dvorak and Joseph Haydn<br>With • Violinist Hilary Hahn and conductor Thierry Fischer<br>When • Reviewed Friday, Jan. 5; repeats Saturday, Jan. 6, at 7:30 p.m.<br>Where • Abravanel Hall, 123 W. South Temple, Salt Lake City<br>Running time • 2 hours, including intermission<br>Tickets • From $23; utahsymphony.org
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