This Utah community had to face the music: The orchestra was actually getting too big

Cache Valley • When Mary Sharp joined the Cache Symphony Orchestra nearly three decades ago, it was a small community group that gave her the chance to rekindle her violin skills.

Through the years, though, as the community orchestra grew and grew, the music became more and more difficult, practices became longer and longer, and competition grew stiffer and stiffer.

Sharp had enjoyed playing in the orchestra because it allowed her to create sounds she could never produce on her own. But this year, the orchestra — which had historically welcomed any and all Cache Valley musicians — had strayed from its origins.

“I just thought that was so sad,” Sharp said. “I mean, it’s great to see it grow, but it’s too bad to see them shut their door on lots of people that want to be in an orchestra.”

That’s when Elizabeth Simmons stepped forward. Simmons — who had been playing in the orchestra’s “nosebleeds” section — said her fellow intermediate players were struggling with the increasingly advanced pieces being thrown at them. She said they often would express their desires for a new orchestra, one focused less on performing difficult pieces and more on playing for fun.

One morning, Simmons woke up at 4:30 with the vision for an additional community orchestra that would meet her — and her fellow orchestra members’ — needs. She jotted down her ideas, went back to bed and later that day — despite having no experience in the matter — volunteered to lead the effort of creating a new group.

“If it hadn’t been for all those people that kept asking me questions,” Simmons said, “I surely never would have raised my hand.”

The result: the new Mount Logan Symphony, which staged its debut performance Friday night.

Simmons, who is passionate about encouraging children to stick with the instruments they learn in school, said it was important to establish another symphony in Cache Valley because there are few opportunities for adults to participate in low-stakes music performances.

“There’s nothing more joyful than being able to learn music and then present it to others and make them happy as well,” she said. “It’s really important that there be a place for everyone to be able to do that and to be able to focus on the music that they really love.”

The Mount Logan Symphony’s premiere strayed from a typical orchestral concert, with pop songs, Halloween and Christmas tunes, along with “Star Wars”-themed pieces, complete with a lightsaber display.

The goal, explained artistic director Ghyas Zeidieh, is to make the music fun and family-friendly.

He also wants the symphony to be deeply involved with the rest of the community by working with other arts organizations and performing at places like the Cache Valley Gardeners’ Market.

Zeidieh said the area’s music is what drew him to the valley a year ago from the Midwest. In addition to the two community orchestras, Utah State University offers an extensive music program, including an orchestra and various other troupes for students to join.

“I’ve never been in a place where we have so many musicians,” Zeidieh said, “in one square.”

After the birth of the Mount Logan Symphony, the Cache Symphony Orchestra split in two, said Boyd Edwards, who chairs the orchestra’s board. And both groups, he said, seem better off under the new arrangement.

Edwards said the demand for an additional orchestra reflects the valley’s rich musical culture. Prominent Utah musicians hail from the area: Craig Jessop, who served as music director for The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square and the American Festival Chorus and Orchestra, and Michael Ballam, who founded the Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre in Logan.

“The love for music in our valley runs deep,” Edwards said. “This valley just oozes music from every pore.”