UTAH SYMPHONY AND UTAH SYMPHONY CHORUS, Abravanel Hall, Friday; additional performance tonight, 8 p.m. (355-2787)

Visceral and exciting, German composer Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana" is a popular piece that is, at least in part, familiar to most. If done right, its opening strains of "O Fortuna" grab the listeners and defy them to get bored.

Such was the case Friday night at Abravanel Hall, when the Utah Symphony under the baton of music director Keith Lockhart joined with the Utah Symphony Chorus and guest artists in a dynamic performance of this timeless piece.

A challenging work for singers, the Utah Symphony Chorus tackled "Carmina" with force. The chorus sang the quick, staccato sections with self-assurance and the slower poems with passion.

Joining the chorus were soloists Maureen McKay, soprano; John McVeigh, tenor; and Lucas Meachem, baritone, who gave a beautifully rich performance. Meachem was particularly strong in "Estuans interius" ("In Rage and Bitterness") and with McKay in "Tempus est iocundum" ("Pleasant is the Season").

McVeigh shone in the only solo for a tenor in "Olim lacus colueram" ("The Roasted Cygnet Sings"), a humorous song about a swan's last moments before being devoured.

Lockhart captured the enormity of the score while artfully keeping all the various players in balance. His attention to detail and the orchestra's expression were much appreciated.

The symphony opened the night with Kurt Weill's Second Symphony.

Weill, also a German composer but on the wrong side of the Third Reich, wrote the piece in the 1930s at about the same time Orff wrote "Carmina Burana." The juxtaposition of the two works allowed listeners to compare not only styles but also to consider the impact that world events — like Hitler's rise to power — have on life experiences, including music.

While Weill is known for his musical theater works, "Threepenny Opera" "Mahagonny," "Mack the Knife" and "The Seven Deadly Sins," he was no slouch when it came to more classical symphonic works.

Weill's Second Symphony has a strong dramatic inclination driven forward through rhythm in each of its three movements.

The orchestra brought life to this lesser-known work, giving it an almost cinematic feel.

Its colorful and nuanced performance was a nice complement to the evening's second half.

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E-mail: jharrison@desnews.com