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Abravanel Hall is an amazing concert hall in downtown Salt Lake City. It first opened in 1973 as Symphony Hall. It was renamed in 1993 for Maurice Abravanel who was the conductor for the Utah Symphony. It was designed specifically to be a concert hall and provide an environment of acoustic excellence.
I got wind of a free Days of 47 Pops Concert happening here and I thought, hey, we have been meaning to come here, why not do it for free? Honestly, I just really wanted to see the building since it’s future is still a little up in the air. There were talks of demolishing it for a reimagined Salt Palace, but I think enough people made a fit about it that they scrapped that idea but… it’s Utah. Utah doesn’t care about history and our politicians are easily bought and don't care what the people want. So who knows what might happen. Due to that I was feeling we really needed to get around to seeing it sooner rather than later.
This post is pictures from my phone. I didn’t want to deal with the camera for a concert.
Quick Details:
Length: As far away as you park
Trail Type: Wander
Difficulty: DR2.
Elevation Gain: The lobby is 4 stories.
Restroom: I mean yea…
Dogs? No.
Other Info: Fee Area, depending on what concert you are watching.
To Get Here:
Take i15 to exit 306, 6th South. Head east to 3rd west go left. Take that tows South Temple. There is a parking garage on 3rd west just before South Temple, and another on 2nd South under the Hyatt. There are also a couple other above ground lots nearby. Or you can take a chance on street parking, but I wouldn't plan on that.
You can also ride Trax to the Temple Square Station
The Experience:
We ended up parking about a block away, but, we have legs! So we walked. Parking ended up costing us about $12 bucks between the concert and dinner. Not bad for a nice date night.
We were running a little later than we had planned so I did not investigate this neat art piece any closer, but it is kind of neat!
I guess it is technically Maurice Abravanel Hall. I love the big window reflecting downtown.
I was a little surprised you can see the Chihuly from the outside during daytime.
Said Chihuly. This was another reason I wanted to come here, I wanted to see the authentic Dale Chihuly that we have in Utah. We went to his museum a few years ago, and I have been a big fan ever since. So when I learned we have one here I have been chomping at the bit to come see it myself. I must say, we got a good one! Wow!
So, During the 2002 Olympics in Utah we got a couple of Chihuly sculptures, this one was actually built for the space it is located in. Dale Chihuly gave us a deal since it was valued at approximately $900,000, he offered it for $625,000 with the caveat that it would remain in Abravanel Hall and that the public could view it without attending a show. Source (outside link)
What? We didn’t have to wait for a show to come see it? damnit!
But that does pose the question. If they do tear down the building do we have to give it back?
I didn’t know until now it was called Olympic Tower.
It is so cool!
It is 27 feet tall.
Inside the auditorium, while they are warming up.
Abravanel Hall has no proscenium - meaning that is is an extension of the audience. I had to work that idea out with Landis (who has theater experience) as to what the heck that really meant as I was not understanding what the interwebs were telling me. Ultimately it is pretty much the frame around the stage that acts as the 4th wall (still lost at this point) but I clarified with our living room that has a window into the kitchen, so it’s like looking into the kitchen from the entrance, vs looking into it from the window. Okay, I get it now. I hope that makes as much sense to you as it did me haha. Maybe, its like looking at your front yard from the front of your house, vs looking out the window at your front yard.
The balconies and pretty chandeliers.
The lobby.
The Chihuly again.
It is just an incredible work of art! We should feel honored to have it here.
Inside again.
Closer.
Intermission allowed some more time to explore the neat building and artwork.
It’s amazing how much time you have when you don’t have to squeeze in a smoke (we both quit at the beginning of the year and haven’t looked back since!).
The lobby.
Painting of Maurice Abravanel. I think the lighting is off and washes his face out too much.
Plaque for the Chihuly.
Other artists.
Random piano under the stairs.
Information Plaque.
Maurice Abravanel
The lobby.
We decided to go upstairs.
The stairs are on a slant, which was a little bit weird.
The Chihuly from floor 2. It looks great from up here!
Again. The Chihuly Museum did not offer multi-level views.
The temple under construction. This has interfered with my plans quite a few times this year. Hopefully they finish up soon.
Still on floor 2.
This is such an amazing work of art!
The back of the lobby.
The big front window from the 3rd floor.
We decided to keep going up to the 4th floor.
From the top floor.
The Chihuly again.
Closer.
Again.
The front window again.
“Obert C Tanner
American Scholar Industrialist Philanthropist
In Appreciation for his vision and Leadership in Creating Symphony Hall and for his generous Contributions to
The Utah Symphony”
In a cute little nook at the bottom of the stairs.
The Chihuly.
The concert.
Special guest act Lark & Spur. I liked the international journey they took us on.
After the show.
It has a different personality at night. I love it. Now I want to go back to Chihuly Garden and Glass at nighttime!
Neat art of the symphony. There just always seemed to be someone by it so I had to settle for this angle.
The lobby again.
The Chihuly again. Wow! It is spectacular at night!
Outside.
The building again.
The Utah Museum of Contemporary Art. We have not explored this yet. But hey, since this year appears to be the local culture year, maybe it’ll happen haha. If not, definitely sometime soon.
The Salt Palace.
The Walker Center Tower. I wonder what event it is lit up for.
You Are Here artwork.
The Hyatt Regency. This is only a couple of years old.
The Astra Tower, the newest tallest building in the city.
The Hyatt again.
Tower that took us back to the parking garage.
Inside.
Wow! What a night! That is an absolutely spectacular concert hall! And of course I am a huge fan of the Chihuly too so it was nice to get to see that up close. The Salt Lake Symphony was amazing the Choral arts Society of Utah were fantastic, and they blended together perfectly. We were probably 2 of maybe 20 people under 65 haha but whatevs it was neat! I am glad I heard about it and glad that we decided it was worth coming to check out! Plus, wow, that is a neat building. I really hope we don't lose it. 10 squirrels!
As for difficulty, I believe it is fully ADA compliant now, so DR2.
Obviously, only service dogs are allowed.
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