Summertime in Park City has become synonymous with outdoor music, and this year is no exception. From classical to classic rock, there’s a chance to shake your groove thing nearly every day of the week.
What started out as a modest Wednesday night concert series in City Park has exploded to include concerts at every conceivable venue throughout town and across the Snyderville Basin.
Diehard music fans can even head down to Salt Lake for options that expand the late June through August summertime music in Park City schedule to include the shoulder season months of May and September.
Visitors are often surprised at this annual opportunity to picnic it up, and with a nice adult beverage, no less. That’s because most of the venues are private, and imbibing is allowed as a result.
The original Wednesday night free concerts are still one of the most beloved summertime traditions among locals and visitors. The Grand Valley Bank Community Concert Series at Deer Valley was initially launched by Park City Performing Arts Foundation in the small pavilion by Miner’s Hospital in City Park. A few years in, the crowds grew too large for the grassy knoll, necessitating a move to Deer Valley’s Snow Park Lodge.
Many seasons later, PCPAF (now the Park City Institute) handed the reigns over to the prodigious Mountain Town Music, which has expanded the roster of bands to include both local favorites and national touring acts. For this year’s series, local bands include Son of Ian, The Crescent Super Band, The Chickens, and Park City’s legendary Motherlode Canyon Band. All concerts start at 6 p.m., and ample parking is available in Deer Valley Resort’s adjacent lots.
This year’s schedule is as follows:
June 17 Stranger Band
June 24 The Changing Lanes Experience
July 1 Robyn Cage
July 8 The Chickens
July 15 Slickrock Gypsies
July 22 Tracorum
July 29 Motherlode Canyon Band
August 5 Kings of 88
August 12 Son Of Ian
August 19 The Crescent Super Band
August 26 Park City All Star Jam Session
Mountain Town Music’s other summertime shows are held at Miner’s Park on Main Street every weekend, Thursday nights at the Newpark Amphitheatre at Kimball Junction, in Peoa at Woodenshoe Park on Fridays, Saturday nights at Canyons Resort, Sundays during the day at the Park Silly Sunday Market, and Sunday nights outside of Billy Blanco’s restaurant in Quarry Village. Check out their website for updates.
Deer Valley Resort’s two headliner concert series bring in major league performers: the Utah Symphony | Utah Opera’s (USUO) Deer Valley Music Festival, and the Park City Institute’s St. Regis Big Stars, Bright Nights series.
The Deer Valley Music Festival kicks off on July 4th, featuring Patriotic Pops with Bravo Broadway, and ends on August 14th with the inimitable Diana Krall. All headliners share the stage with USUO musicians, creating an under-the-stars mountainside experience available in few other venues. Some of the smaller shows, however, take place at the beautiful St. Mary’s Church on S.R. 224 (near the McPolin Barn). Tickets are available at the Deer Valley Music Festival website, and the full lineup is as follows:
July 4 Patriotic Pops with Bravo Broadway (Deer Valley)
July 8 Mozart & Mendelssohn (St. Mary’s Church)
July 10 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
July 11 Smokey Robinson with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
July 17 Disney’s Fantasia: Live in Concert with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
July 18 Classical Mystery Tour with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
July 22 Muir String Quartet (St. Mary’s Church)
July 24 Country Legends (Deer Valley)
July 25 Sinatra Sings Sinatra: A Multimedia Centennial Celebration (Deer Valley)
July 28 Semiosis & Denovo String Quartets (St. Mary’s Church)
July 29 Bach & Vivaldi (St. Mary’s Church)
July 31 1812 Overture! (Deer Valley)
August 1 Ozomatli with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
August 5 Mendelssohn, Bruch & Haydn (St. Mary’s Church)
August 7 Hollywood Under the Stars (Deer Valley)
August 8 Kristin Chenoweth with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
August 14 Diana Krall with the Utah Symphony (Deer Valley)
This year’s St. Regis Big Stars, Bright Nights concert series has an earlier-than-usual start on June 30 with the triple header of Toad the Wet Sprocket, Smash Mouth and Tonic, and concludes Labor Day weekend on September 6 with hitmaker Aloe Blacc. Tickets are available for purchase online here, or in person at the Eccles Center Box Office. The full lineup includes:
June 30 Toad the Wet Sprocket, Smash Mouth and Tonic
July 3 Taste of “Treme:” Funky Meter, Dirty Dozen Brass Band and Lucia Micarelli
July 16 Warren Haynes with Gov’t Mule
July 23 Easton Corbin with Parmalee
July 30 Esperanza Spalding, Perla Batalla and Anna Wilson
August 4 Grace Potter and The Nocturnals
August 15 Chris Botti and Joshua Bell
August 22 The Gipsy Kings featuring Nicolas Reyes and Tonino Baliardo
August 29 Lee Brice
September 6 AloeBlacc
To really expand your musical horizons, take a quick drive to Salt Lake for two of the area’s favorite concert series: Red Butte Garden Outdoor Concert Series and the Twilight Concerts at Pioneer Park.
Tickets for the Red Butte Outdoor Concert Series went on sale to members only on April 27 and, by all accounts, many of the shows sold out on the first day. In years past, however, tickets for shows that were “sold out” in the spring mysteriously became available as the concert date neared. Often, the reason given is the artist released their holds, but either way, hold off from purchasing on ticket resale sites to see if tickets are released by the venue itself. Be sure to sign up for Red Butte’s newsletter and “like” them on Facebook so you don’t miss out. Tickets go on sale to the general public at 9 a.m. on May 4, and can be purchased at www.redbuttegarden.ticketfly.com.
This year’s series is as follows:
May 22 Passion Pit
May 26 The Decemberists
May 27 Chromeo & ODESZA
May 29 Lindsey Stirling
June 2 Ryan Adams
June 12 Tedeschi Trucks Band, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings
June 16 Cooder-White-Skaggs
June 25 Rob Thomas
July 9 Brian Wilson
July 14 Hank Williams, Jr.
July 19 Sweet Harmony Soul featuring Mavis Staples, Patty Griffin
July 21 Steve Miller Band
July 22 An Evening with Harry Connick, Jr.
July 26 An Evening with Lyle Lovett & his Large Band
July 27 Under The Sun Tour – Sugar Ray, Better Than Ezra, Uncle Kracker, Eve 6
August 4 Alabama Shakes
August 6 Michael Franti & Spearhead
August 7 John Fogerty – 1969
August 12 Trampled By Turtles & The Devil Makes Three
August 16 Brandi Carlile
August 17 Rodrigo y Gabriela
August 18 Wilco
August 24 Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club – Adios Tour
August 25 Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion – America The Beautiful Tour
August 31 YES & TOTO
September 6 An Evening with CAKE
September 15 An Evening with Mark Knopfler
September 16 An Evening with Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals
Finally, the Thursday night Twilight Concert Series at Pioneer Park in Salt Lake City started out at the much smaller and intimate Gallivan Center Plaza, but as the crowds grew, the organizers moved it to its current location, eventually charging admission to keep out the riffraff. The park gets a scrubbing right before each show, with Salt Lake City’s finest moving the homeless out and securing the venue with a huge chain link fence. It’s still one of the best values around, with tickets just $5 in advance and $10 at the gate, and there is ample parking at the nearby Gateway Mall’s two indoor lots. Visit 24Tix.com for ticket information, and check out this year’s lineup (so far) below:
July 16 Death Cab for Cutie
July 23 Black Rebel Motorcycle Club with Father John Misty
July 30 Prhyme with Adrian Younge and special guest Bishop Nehru
August 6 The Kills with special guest Metz
August 13 The Word with special guest Lee Fields and the Expressions
August 20 Run the Jewels
August 27 TBD
Whether it’s hearing a yet-to-be-discovered local band at Newpark, or a true legend with USUO, the fabulous summertime music in Park City is yet another reason to call Christine when you’ve decided it’s time to Choose Park City.
