Jared Oaks
Music Director
Don Basinger
Orchestra Director Emeritus
Ken Hodges
Orchestra Contractor
Nicholas Maughan
Company Pianist
Max Hall
Principal Academy Pianist
Rob Wood
Company Class Pianist
The Ballet West Orchestra
The Ballet West Orchestra was formed in 1978. Music for more intimate settings from the Chamber Orchestra literature was performed in venues that included St. Mark’s Cathedral‚ the Presbyterian Church and the Assembly Hall on Temple Square in Salt Lake City.
After 24 seasons with the Utah Symphony Orchestra‚ Donald Basinger endeavored to bring this literature to the community. After the Utah Chamber Orchestra was established‚ other musical organizations requested collaborative efforts to perform the great choral/orchestral literature. These included the Utah Symphony Chorus‚ Pro Musica‚ the Southern Utah Chorale‚ the University of Utah A Cappella Choir‚ Utah Opera‚ the Utah State University Choirs‚ and Classic Concerts‚ Inc. Performance venues included the Tabernacle on Temple Square‚ Abravanel Hall‚ the Capitol Theatre‚ the Salt Palace Convention Center‚ and many local churches.
In 1990‚ The Utah Chamber Orchestra began accompanying Ballet West in numerous productions. In 2014 the orchestra’s name was changed to the Ballet West Orchestra. The Orchestra performs for nearly 100 of Ballet West’s performances each year.
