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Utah Symphony Orchestra

 Organization

Administrative History

The Utah Symphony (1940- ) is one of America's major symphony orchestras.

The Utah Symphony was founded in 1940 and gave its first concert in Salt Lake City, Utah on May 8, 1940. In 1946 the orchestra's name was officially changed to the Utah Symphony.

The Utah Symphony became recognized as a leading American symphony mainly through the efforts of Maurice Abravanel. He led the symphony from 1947-1979. During his time as conductor, the orchestra went on four international tours, released over 100 recordings, and developed one of the largest music education programs in the region.

In 2002, the Utah Symphony merged with the Utah Opera to form the Utah Symphony and Opera.

Citation:
UtahSymphony.org, via WWW, March 16, 2015 (The Utah Symphony was founded in 1940 and gave its first concert in Salt Lake City, Utah on May 8, 1940; name was officially changed to the Utah Symphony; became recognized as a leading American symphony mainly through the efforts of Maurice Abravanel; led the symphony from 1947-1979; the orchestra went on four international tours, released over 100 recordings, and developed one of the largest music education programs in the region; the Utah Symphony merged with the Utah Opea to form the Utah Symphony and Opera)

Found in 4 Collections and/or Records:

Lowell M. Durham papers

 Series
Identifier: MSS 8150
Scope and Contents Contains sheet music, drafts, and clippings by Durham. Includes sheet music for his pieces, as well as compositions by composer Crawford Gates. Collection also contains several materials related to Durham's book on Maurice Abravanel, his research as well on Latter-day Saint musicians, and many newspaper and magazine clippings with news on the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Utah Symphony, and music programs at the University of Utah. Some personal papers are also included, such as notes, personal...
Dates: 1920-1994

Lowell M. Durham articles and drafts, 1925-1992

 Series — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 8150 Series 5
Scope and Contents Contains materials written by and collected by Durham related to Utah and Latter-day Saint music and musicians. Most of the material consists of drafts of chapters from Durham's book on Maurice Abravanel, complete with notes and edits. Also contains some research material, including a few clippings and a list of recordings of the Utah Symphony. There are articles written by Durham and others as well, such as his earlier draft of "The Abravanel Years," the article "Pioneer Symphony" by...
Dates: 1925-1992

Lowell M. Durham papers on Utah musicians, 1940-1991

 Series — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 8150 Series 2
Scope and Contents Contains files on Durham's colleagues. Includes documents on people like Maurice Abravanel, Crawford Gates, Jay Welch, Varujan Kojian, and Leroy Robertson. A variety of materials are included, such as newspaper clippings of reviews of the works done by these people, notes on their careers, even some correspondence. Includes materials related to the creation of the Leroy Robertson Foundation and the publication of the book on Maurice Abravanel. Some of these relate to the Utah Symphony and...
Dates: 1940-1991

Lowell M. Durham sheet music, 1945-1990

 Series — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 8150 Series 1
Scope and Contents Contains loose sheet music for compositions by Durham and others. Includes several copies of Durham's piece "Lyric Folk-Scape, Op. 19," as well as the works like "Once in Royal David's City," and "Calm as a Summer's Morn." Also contains copies of music composed by Crawford Gates, such as "Promised Valley," and "O Lord, Do Not Despise Me." There are a few pieces arranged by Durham which were composed by his father, George H. Durham, like the composition "A New England Pastoral Sketch."...
Dates: 1945-1990