It isn't every day you get to hear a world premiere — it only seems that way lately.
Utah Symphony listeners have had the luxury this year of witnessing three world premieres of works by American composers, commissioned by the orchestra and music director Thierry Fischer in honor of its 75th anniversary and all recorded live for a CD to be released in the spring. All three have engaged the Utah Symphony musicians in specific and significant ways, and none more so than "Control: Five Landscapes for Orchestra" by Nico Muhly, which made a dynamic debut on Friday.
Muhly's vibrant new composition explores the symbiotic relationship between the people of Utah and their environment, but there's much more than that at work in its five movements, which consider various dichotomies — background and foreground, micro and macro, past and present, time and space — in thought-provoking ways.
The performance was enhanced by Joshua Higgason's videography, which functioned as another instrument underscoring the ideas in Muhly's music. Footage shot in Utah was projected on an enormous swath of fabric, draped artfully behind the orchestra so as to suggest the geographic wonders of the state.
The second half of the program brings Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, completing a Beethoven symphony cycle that began on the season's opening two weekends. As most regular symphonygoers know, Fischer favors brisk tempos in his Beethoven, which, combined with transparent musical textures, lent an exhilarating feeling of wildness to Friday's performance. The Utah Symphony Chorus, prepared by Barlow Bradford and seated with the voice parts intermingled rather than in blocks, gave a heartfelt reading of the stirring text in the finale, led by four excellent soloists.
The concert opened with a moving performance of "Nimrod" from Elgar's "Enigma" Variations, in tribute to recently deceased former Utah Symphony music director Joseph Silverstein.
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Utah Symphony
Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and the world premiere of Nico Muhly's "Control: Five Landscapes for Orchestra."
With • Conductor Thierry Fischer, the Utah Symphony Chorus, singers from the University of Utah and soloists Celena Shafer, Sarah Coit, Eric Barry and Michael Dean
When • Reviewed Friday, Dec. 4; repeats Saturday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m.
Where • Abravanel Hall, 123 W. South Temple, Salt Lake City
Running time • 2 hours, including intermission
Tickets • $23-$90; utahsymphony.org
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Thierry Fischer conducts the Utah Symphony as they perform Beethoven's Egmont Overture during their 75th Anniversary Gala Concert at Abravanel Hall Thursday October 1, 2015.
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