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SALT LAKE CITY — As the Utah Symphony opens its 76th season, the orchestra welcomes a series of guest performers, including a pianist with deep ties to our state. Mary Anne Huntsman is one of three dynamic pianists who will perform.
The promotional brochure reads "Ready to Rach?" As in Rachmaninoff.
Mary Anne Huntsman brings the powerful and beloved classic Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 to life in a concert that she actually envisioned as a child.
Her fascination with the piano began at age 3. She watched both of her parents play. Her father, former Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., loves jazz. Her mother, Mary Kaye Huntsman, prefers classical. She challenged Mary Anne to learn a concerto.
"She said if I learn it, then I'll get to go to Disney World. So I learned it in four days and I think I was 4 years old at the time," she said.
Born in Salt Lake, Mary Anne lived with her family in Singapore where her father served as U.S. ambassador. When the family returned to Utah, she attended her first Utah Symphony concert at age 7.
"It was the second movement that even brought tears to my eyes. And I remember going home to my parents saying, 'I want to play this piece with the symphony someday!’”
That moment has come full circle. That is the piece she will perform with the orchestra.
"And they came back and said, 'We want to do the Rach 2.' And, so, I was really, really excited that that was what they chose," she said.
3 world-renowned pianists at #AbravanelHall in a span of 7 days. #JonathanBiss, @HuntsmanMame, and @EmanuelAx! https://t.co/TwVMT3oAwC
— Utah Symphony (@UtahSymphony) September 6, 2016
She loves romantic music and this piece, she said, is the epitome. “There are a lot of parts in this piece that I think people have heard before, in different movies. So, it’s a very popular piece and a crowd-pleaser.”
Music director Thierry Fischer chose it without knowing that Mary Anne had a dream to perform it with the Utah Symphony. "You're telling me the story now and I look forward to seeing her and talking about it. The idea was to welcome her in our symphony organization because she's local, she's fantastic," he said.
Rising star Jonathan Biss and Grammy winner Emanuel Ax also perform opening concerts with the symphony. Huntsman is thrilled to be in such illustrious company.
"He's legendary. So when I found out he was playing the weekend after me, I said, 'oh my goodness!'"
Fischer is thrilled with his guest performers and their programs.
Back in Utah getting ready to open the season for the utahsymphony. #soexcited#rachmaninoff… https://t.co/md5OLcl9iF
— Mary Anne Huntsman (@HuntsmanMame) September 7, 2016
“These famous concertos — first of all, it’s a joy to play them. They (the guest artists) are all the best. It’s a huge honor.”
Huntsman made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2014 and closed the season with China's philharmonic orchestra. She lived there with her parents when her father served again as U.S. ambassador. She said her career really took off performing at embassies in Washington, D.C., following her father's 2012 presidential campaign.
But Utah is coming home.
"I get more nervous playing here than I do anywhere else. I can go to China or Carnegie Hall, but it's a little more nerve-wracking for me to come home … it's also very exciting. And makes you want to work even harder.”
The Utah Symphony's opening gala featuring Huntsman is Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m. in Abravanel Hall.
