UTAH SYMPHONY, Abravanel Hall, Nov. 8; additional performance Nov. 9, 8 p.m., tickets at 801-355-2787, 888-451-2787 or www.utahsymphony.org

Carl Nielsen is relatively unknown to local concertgoers. Not many of his works have been played here, but with the Utah Symphony’s season long perusal of his symphonies Nielsen is finally getting some recognition.

The Danish composer’s Second, which he titled The Four Temperaments, is on the program this weekend. At Friday’s performance Thierry Fischer showed yet again his commanding grasp of this music.

The symphony is a fanciful depiction of different moods, or temperaments, and as such is a bold work that also has its softer moments. And Fischer captured the large sonic landscape Nielsen creates in this work with sweeping lines and vibrantly colored expressions. All of the energy and intensity of the music came through wonderfully in Fischer’s creative and nuanced interpretation.

The orchestra gave a stellar performance. Each section played with cleanly defined articulation and crisp precision. In the third movement, Andante malincolico, the strings played with fluid lines and beautifully crafted phrasings.

Soloist this weekend is the young Scottish violinist Nicola Benedetti playing Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons.

It can be difficult bringing something new to such a well worn work as The Four Seasons and Friday’s performance, while fresh, was hardly imaginative. Benedetti is certainly an exceptional violinist and it would be wonderful having her back in something more substantial. As it was, she was just a glorified concertmaster; any of the four symphony concertmasters could have done an equally outstanding job with the work.

There were some good moments during the performance, however. Fischer did elicit some nuanced playing from his string ensemble, and there was some delightful interplay between Benedetti and concertmaster Kathryn Eberle and principal second violin Claude Halter in the opening movement of the Spring Concerto.