UTAH SYMPHONY, Abravanel Hall, Oct. 26; second performance 8 p.m. Oct. 27, tickets at 801-355-2787 or www.utahsymphony.org

Guest conductor Gerard Schwarz led the Utah Symphony in Friday’s concert of all Russian music. The evening opened with Dmitri Shostakovich’s “October,” a piece to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the Soviet Union. It served as a rousing prelude to the program’s most exciting work, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini” for orchestra and piano.

The pianist for this sprawling number was Lukas Geniusas, a young and vigorous Lithuanian-Russian musician. It’s always a pleasure to hear the work of a great composer meet the skill of a great performer, and Geniusas deftly facilitated that synthesis.

The theme-and-variation setup is a tricky one for both the composer and the performer. Although the form is a vehicle for wit, performers can easily sell the more somber variations short by emphasizing the thread of wit in the overall piece, rather than letting each moment speak for itself. Geniusas, however, performed each segment with the focus and sincerity that it deserved.

The Rachmaninoff piece was an excellent exhibition of Geniusas’ varied skills. At times I was amazed at his sensitivity and musicality, and at other times I was awed at the precision of his thunderous, almost viciously fast octaves.

After a lengthy ovation, Geniusas performed a pensive and focused encore that led the audience into another wave of applause.

The first piece after the intermission was Alexander Borodin’s Second Symphony. The symphony began with a low and surging melody on the strings which spread throughout the orchestra and became the primary motivic idea of the first movement.

It was an exceptionally melodious and rhythmic symphony. When we progressed into the second movement, the brass established a foundation for the other sections by playing a quick, repetitive rhythm with incredible accuracy. They built on this, resulting in a charming scherzo, an inviting Andante, and a powerful finale.

The last piece on the program was a selection from Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s suite from The Tale of Tsar Saltan. They included a march and “The Three Wonders” and played them with sweeping force. During the final applause, just as I was making peace with a the absence of “The Flight of the Bumblebee,” a number so conspicuous by its omission, Schwarz turned to the audience and announced that they would now perform it as an encore.

It was a subdued and controlled rendition of the piece, but it hit its mark and sent the audience smiling into an unusually crisp October night.

DEER VALLEY MUSIC FESTIVAL, UTAH SYMPHONY CHAMBER ORCHESTRA, St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Aug. 8

The Deer Valley Music Festival ended its chamber music series Wednesday with pieces by Beethoven, Haydn and Mozart. The Beethoven and Haydn works are less performed selections form their oeuvre, but the final piece was Mozart’s widely celebrated 40^th Symphony.

During the last season, the Utah Symphony performed all of Beethoven’s nine symphonies, but it seems that their hunger for Beethoven continues unabated. They opened with Beethoven’s Ritterballet, his first orchestral composition. Although it pales in comparison to his later works, it was fascinating to listen to if only for its historical significance. It was full of those plucky, clean cadences one finds so often in the classical period, but there was just enough brooding and inventiveness to let the listener know it was indeed Beethoven’s. Parts of this piece, like the eerie and beautiful pizzicato section, were so forward thinking, that they sounded like they belonged more to a mature Tchaikovsky than Beethoven.

The piece had something like a rondo form, where a main segment popped up after each subsequent section. I was impressed that the orchestra was able to make it sound fresh each time. It wasn’t challenging on a technical level, but the players managed to give it new life with each utterance.

Next on the bill was Haydn’s 90^th Symphony. Associate conductor Vladimir Kulenovic introduced this piece by saying that although it is one of Haydn’s mature symphonies, it’s one of his least performed. Kulenovic then went on to talk about how Haydn is one of the wittiest composers in the repertoire. This got me thinking. I don’t believe that music, in and of itself, can be witty. It can certainly be clever, inventive and even charming, but the humor in music is always in reference to something external. A piece can have a funny name, like Satie’s Flabby Preludes for a Dog. Or music can make coy references to other music, and thereby be funny. But notes are too abstract to carry humor by themselves.

The application to last night’s performance was that Haydn had written in two false endings for the symphony, so some in the audience clapped early. It was funny. I won’t lie. But the notes weren’t funny; it was the embarrassment of those clappers and the unintended breach in etiquette that was humorous.

The actual symphony was a treat. The Andante movement was surprisingly and refreshingly forceful. And mostly the orchestra showed calculated control and precision – a must for classical era works. There were just a few times when the violins let their intonation get away from them.

After the intermission, we were treated to the familiar strains of Mozart’s 40^th Symphony. I said that these were all “hidden” Viennese gems, and I think that applies to this popular work; it’s just hidden in plain sight. People often talk about this as a conflicted sounding work from a usually happy-go-lucky composer. Conflicted might be too soft a word. Last night, at least, the symphony sounded hostile. Usually Mozart tosses themes back and forth between sections in a kind of playful way, but under Kulenovic’s lithe baton, the different instruments seemed to be at odds. And I mean that in a good way.

When the symphony was over, there was an odd and conspicuous delay in the applause. It was almost like the cinematic cliché of a “slow clap.” I’m still not sure if it was because Haydn had teased us so much just before, or if we were all so shocked with the force of this interpretation of Mozart, but the applause started slowly and built until we were all on our feet.

I love the Deer Valley Music Festival. I guess as a critic I’m expected to be at least partially reserved in my enthusiasm, but I just love it. I loved the beautiful drive up to Park City, and I enjoyed going for a little walk along a hill during the intermission. During this walk, Kulenovic actually approached me, and we had a brief and friendly conversation. I’m sure he had no idea who I was or that I was reviewing his concert, but he asked me how I was enjoying myself, and I responded enthusiastically. He said something to the effect of, “Isn’t it great that you can go for a hike during intermission? This could never happen in New York City.” I agreed. It’s a rare opportunity to hear masterful music performed at a world-class level, and then to walk out under the stars and feel a warm summer breeze run across a hill. And then to chitchat with the conductor under said stars and in said running summer breeze. That doesn’t happen in New York. It doesn’t happen in Salt Lake, either. Like I said, I love the Deer Valley Music Festival.