Violinist-conductor eager for Utah concert

Violinist and conductor Jaime Laredo, who hasn't performed in Salt Lake City for several years, finally returns to Abravanel Hall Thursday to conduct the Utah Symphony Chamber Orchestra in Haydn's Symphony No. 103, "Drum Roll."

"I'm looking forward to coming back," Laredo said by phone from his home in Bloomington, Ind. "I love the orchestra, and we have a great program."

In the first half of the concert, Laredo will join concertmaster Ralph Matson in J.S. Bach's Concerto for Two Violins in G minor. "I love playing with Ralph. He is a wonderful violinist and a wonderful concertmaster."

Rounding out the concert is Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, with Laredo as soloist. "Of the five concertos for violin Mozart wrote, that is my favorite. The slow movement is so heavenly."

But Laredo laments that Mozart never wrote more concertos for the violin. "Imagine if he had lived another 20 years, what we could have had. Pianists have all these wonderful concertos, and we only have those five. But they are wonderful works."

Since making his professional debut more than 40 years ago, Laredo has had a demanding concert schedule. But the current season has proven to be one of his busiest. "It's been a crazy, insane year, but I've been having a wonderful time."

This season, the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio is celebrating its 30th anniversary. Laredo said it's hard to believe the trio is in its fourth decade now. "The years have just flown by. It's difficult for me to look in the mirror because I think that I haven't changed, but I know I have."

The trio consists of Laredo's wife, cellist Sharon Robinson, and their good friend, pianist Joseph Kalichstein. They've been touring the world celebrating their milestone with concerts in New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, Hamburg, Copenhagen and elsewhere.

To help commemorate their anniversary, the three commissioned a work from the American composer Richard Danielpour. He wrote a piano quartet for them and Michael Tree, violist of the Guarneri Quartet. "Since Richard had already written a trio for us, he thought a quartet would be a lovely way to mark our anniversary.

Laredo jokingly refers to Danielpour as the trio's resident composer. "He has written several pieces for us. I love his music because it comes from the heart."

This year marks another high point for Laredo as well, but one that's on a much more personal note — he and his wife are celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary.