Intersections

NOVA Chamber Music Series presents Intersections at Libby Gardner Concert Hall on Sunday, February 21, 2027. It's part of the Libby Gardner Series, and the program puts together four composers from different eras—Mozart, Debussy, Reich, and Stravinsky—to trace a line from the classical to the neoclassical and the minimalist.

The afternoon opens with Steve Reich's Mallet Quartet, written for four percussionists. It's a hypnotic piece that builds on the repetitive, shifting patterns Reich is known for. From there, the mood shifts to the voice: soprano Celena Shafer, a NOVA favorite, performs Debussy's Ariettes oubliées. The Fry Street Quartet, NOVA's quartet-in-residence, takes over for Mozart's String Quartet in E-flat, a lyrical work that sits right in the classical tradition. The concert closes with Stravinsky's Octet, a neoclassical piece performed by principals of the Utah Symphony.

Between the four, the program covers a lot of ground. You've got the precision of Reich's percussion, the intimacy of Debussy's songs, the lyricism of Mozart's quartet, and the larger, more structured sound of Stravinsky's octet. The connection is in how they talk to each other across the years, and having the Utah Symphony principals step in for the finale brings a full orchestral presence to the hall.

Intersections is at Libby Gardner Concert Hall, 1375 Presidents' Circle, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, on Sunday, February 21, 2027, starting at 3 PM.