American Fork Symphony

Helen McGarr of Lindon, Jonathan Keith of American Fork, Kyla Worthington of Highland and Jossalyn Jensen of Springville will be the featured soloists during the evening. The orchestra will be conducted by Alan Allred.

Flutist Helen McGarr, 16, will perform Concertino for Flute and Orchestra by Chaminade. McGarr, began her performing career as a concerto soloist with the Salt Lake Symphony at the age of 7 and was also a soloist with the American Fork Symphony at the age of 11. In 2007, she performed with the Utah Symphony in its "Salute to Youth" program and will perform in 2008 with the Utah Valley Symphony.

Pianist Jonathan Keith, 18, will perform Concerto for the Left Hand by Ravel. Keith attends Young University and studies piano with Irene Peery-Fox. He has won first place in the UMIA concerto competition, Utah State Fair competition, BYU concerto competition and has soloed with the American Fork Symphony, Utah Valley Symphony and the Utah Symphony several times.

Pianist Kyla Joan Worthington, 12, will perform Concerto No. 1 for Piano and Orchestra by Muczynski. Worthington began her piano study at the age of 6 with Amanda Moody Nixon. She was the first-place winner of the Riverton Metropolitan Orchestra Auditions. Kyla won Utah's "Little Miss" and represented Utah in New Orleans. She was awarded "Overall Talent Winner" and won second runner-up in "World's Little Miss." She was a first-place winner in the 2004 Encore Keyboard Competition and has received several other piano awards. Kyla attends Legacy Elementary School and is the daughter of Troy and Collette Worthington.

Violist Jossalyn Jensen, 15, will perform "Rhapsody" by Serly. She has been studying the viola for more than 11 years. She has studied with Linda Duncan and Denise Willey and is currently studying with David Dalton. She has soloed with several local orchestras including Nachtmusik and the Pleasant Grove and Utah Valley symphonies.

The approximately 70 members of the American Fork Symphony live in American Fork and surrounding communities stretching from Lehi to Payson. The symphony is supported by the American Fork Arts Council and American Fork City. For more information about the organization, visit the orchestra's Web site at www.americanforksymphony.org.

Utah Valley Symphony

Symphony to play Mendelssohn, Copland

The Utah Valley Symphony will offer visually evocative works by two distinctly different composers in its final concert of the season.

Under the baton of Bryce Rytting, the orchestra will play Felix Mendelssohn's Symphony no. 4 in A Major ("Italian") and Aaron Copland's "Appalachian Spring," finishing out a season of music the orchestra has never performed before in its 49-year history.

"We decided that these two works would make a wonderful conclusion to the season," says Rytting. "We saved the best for last."

Performances will be April 29 and 30 and May 1 in the Covey Center for the Arts, 425 W. Center.

Tuesday's concert is specially priced for families, at $25, with first-come, first-served seating. Reserved seats Wednesday and Thursday evenings are $10 each ($8 for students and senior citizens). Call 852-7007 for tickets.

Mendelssohn's travels inspired some of his best-known works, including the Symphony no. 4, which he composed after visiting Venice, Rome and Naples. It was first performed in London in 1833.

Copland's "Appalachian Spring," which incorporates the Shaker tune "Simple Gifts," was commissioned by Martha Graham as ballet music for her choreography. She chose the title and danced the principal role herself. Copland later adapted the original score for 13 instruments into a suite for orchestra, which was first performed in Carnegie Hall in 1945.

"Both pieces exemplify what music historians call 'exoticism,'" Rytting explains. "Mendelssohn's sun-drenched 'Italian' Symphony evokes a landscape far removed from his cold and rainy North-German homeland. And Copland, a sophisticated Jewish urbanite, captures the atmosphere of a simple Christian farming community so convincingly, his music has become an aural symbol of rural America, played or imitated in dozens, perhaps hundreds of film scores, commercials and other compositions."

He adds, "Playing this music is a lovely way to end our season. We have enjoyed every rehearsal."

SCERA

Synthesis to bring Prize-winning Jazz & Big Band at SCERA May 9 -- A classic jazz song declares, "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing," and if that's true, then the May 9 performance at the SCERA Center for the Arts by BYU's award-winning jazz and big band ensemble Synthesis should mean a lot of things.

The celebrated ensemble will swing with jazz, big band, American swing, blues, pop, Latin, funk and fusion in a 7 p.m. concert where playing renditions by such classic musicians as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Harry Connick, Jr., Glenn Miller and Louis Armstrong is a performance staple.

Reserved-seat tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for seniors (65 and older), students (w/ID) and children (age 3-11). They are available weekdays from 10am-6pm and Saturdays from noon to 6 p.m. at the SCERA Center, 745 S. State St., Orem, by calling (801) 225-ARTS, online at www.scera.org or at the door 30 minutes prior to performance.

Synthesis began in 1973 and quickly became one of the university's most sought after groups. It also became one of the most difficult groups of which to be a part. Rigorous auditions yield between 18 and 20 student musicians selected for the premier group. ¬ 

Much of the group's success can be attributed to its director, Ray Smith, who is the director of jazz studies and a woodwind professor at BYU. He earned his bachelor's degree at BYU where he played lead alto saxophone and was first clarinet in the Wind Symphony and Philharmonic Orchestra. He subsequently earned his master's and doctoral degrees from Indiana University and became a part of the BYU faculty in 1982. ¬ 

Earlier this year he was awarded the first Utah Jazz Master award by the International Association for Jazz Education. This award goes to some of the great pioneers in jazz at an international/national level. During the presentation, the officers said Smith had made the biggest impact on the state of jazz in Utah than any other single individual and that any other future Jazz Master awards presented in Utah would bear his name.

"Smokey Joe's Cafe" to be performed in Orem -- "Smokey Joe's Cafe," the longest running song and dance musical revue in Broadway history, will play Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the SCERA Center for the Arts.

Reserved-seat tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for seniors (65+), students (w/ID) and children (3-11) and are available from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. weekdays and Saturdays from noon-6 p.m. at the SCERA Center, 745 S. State, Orem, by calling (801) 25-ARTS, online at www.scera.org or at the door 30 minutes prior to the show.

Assisting Mortensen is Jeremy Showgren, music director; Danielle Berry, stage manager; David Whitlock, set and light design; Debbie Bowman, costume design; and Mike James, props.

Covenant Communications

Record your laughs with Bruce Lindsay -- Bruce Lindsay will perform original stories from The Home Town Weekly, Good News For A Change at 6:30 p.m. Saturday and May 3 at Digital Source Studio in American Fork.

Lindsay, the primary news anchor of KSL Television, says The Hometown Weekly, Good News For A Change reveals a lighter side of himself that he has to keep in check on television. Lindsay claims to draw his stories from the pages of The Parley's Progress, the hometown weekly newspaper in Parley Grove, Utah.

Lindsay says "I've had a love affair with the hometown weekly ever since I used to deliver it each Thursday starting when I was in the seventh grade. Got paid a penny a paper. You could still buy penny candy in those days."

Lindsay will be recording these stories sprinkled with musical interludes by Blue Cheese A-Cappella in front of live audiences on April 26 and May 3 at 6:30 p.m. for publication later this year. Adults and teenagers interested in becoming a member of this studio audience should RSVP to Phil Reschke at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it by today for the first show or April 30 for the second show. Digital Source Studios is located at 920 E. State Road in American Fork.

Lehi Arts Council

"All I Really Need to Know..." opens -- The Lehi City Arts Council presents "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" on April 24-26, 28, May 1-3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Glen M. Smith Family Theatre, 685 N. Center Street.

Based on Robert Fulghum's best-selling books, "Kindergarten" takes a funny, insightful, heartwarming look at what is profound in everyday life. This tightly woven adaptation has earned standing ovations from L.A. to D.C. It's an evening of theatrical storytelling in revue format, with monologues, dialogues, and multiple voice narration, enhanced through the use of live piano underscoring, which provides fluidity, charm, and emotional texture.

Tickets are $8 and are available online at www.lehicityarts.org or by calling 369-8806. Reservations are recommended. Small children are discouraged in courtesy to the actors.

Utah Baroque Ensemble

Utah Baroque Ensemble to perform -- The Utah Baroque Ensemble directed by Martha Sargent, will present two concerts in north Utah County in anticipation of their upcoming tour to Italy and Switzerland, where they will perform at Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, among other locations.

Local concerts will be Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the Grove Creek LDS meetinghouse, 475 N. 700 East, Pleasant Grove, and the Orem City Library, 58 N. State St., at 7 p.m. on May 5.

Pleasant Grove Arts

The Wizard of Oz -- Center Stage Youth Performers are presenting "The Wizard of Oz" today at 7 p.m. and Friday at 4 and 7:30 p.m. at the Ragan Theater at UVSC, located in the Student Center.

Cost is $6 at the door or online at www.plgrove.org/stage/productions. To purchase online, please select the performance you wish to attend.

The show is about 1 hour and 30 minutes in length and will include a meet-and-greet session for children to get autographs and photos with their favorite characters.

Hale Center Theater

The Miracle Worker to open¬ -- The inspiring story of young Helen Keller and her teacher, Annie Sullivan, is currently being performed through May 24 at the Hale Center Theater Orem, 225 W. 400 North, with performances nightly, except Sundays.

Evening performances begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday matinees are scheduled for May 10, 17 and 24 at 3:30 p.m. (The theater will be dark April 15, 16, 22, 23, and 26.)

Ticket prices range from $11.50 to $15.50, depending on night and seating location. Tickets may be purchased by calling the box office at 801-226-8600.

The play is directed by David Morgan, who single cast the play.