Eisenhour, Symphony have Abravanel Hall swingin'

KELLY EISENHOUR, UTAH SYMPHONY, Abravanel Hall, Friday, additional performance tonight at 8 p.m. (355-2787)

Vocalist Kelly Eisenhour, clarinetist Tad Calcara and his New Deal Swing band, conductor Keith Lockhart and the Utah Symphony put some swing into Abravanel Hall on Friday. The program, a tribute to the big band era, spotlighted the music of six of the biggest names from the 1920s and '30s.

The first half of the concert was pretty much a warm-up for what was to follow after intermission. The opening segment, featuring Lockhart and the Utah Symphony, took the audience on a quick history of jazz. A couple of the highlights from this part of the concert saw Calcara, trumpeter Peter Margulies and pianist Jason Hardink cutting loose on Jelly Roll Morton's "Black Bottom Stomp," and the orchestra playing a smooth arrangement of George Gershwin's Three Preludes.

It was in the second half, though, that things started to heat up.

Calcara, who is the symphony's principal clarinet, showed what a tremendous jazz musician he is as well. He and the New Deal Swing (which made its Abravanel Hall debut Friday) were highlighted in several numbers throughout the 70-minute set, starting with Glenn Miller's hit "In the Mood." They were joined here by members of the BYU ballroom dance team. (The dancers were also featured in Benny Goodman's "Swingtime in the Rockies" and "Swing, Swing, Swing" and Fats Waller's "This Joint Is Jumpin'.")

Calcara, whose grandfather was a band leader in Southern California, had a blast throughout the evening, even hamming it up in "Ain't Misbehavin'." He and Lockhart also got into the act with Eisenhour, singing with her on "This Joint Is Jumpin'."

But in many ways, it was Eisenhour who stole the show. She is a wonderful singer with a dusky voice that can be sultry or sweet, depending on her mood. She knows how to present her material, her delivery is on the money and she draws her audience into her world. She was particularly enjoyable with Johnny Mercer's delightful "Tangerine." A surprise song, not listed in the program, was "Salt Lake City Blues" from the 1941 film "Stormy Weather."

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E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com