Utah Classical Music of the Past
Gallery of new recordings of old music - for the curious or the studious
Utah Classical Music of the Past
Gallery of new recordings of old music - for the curious or the studious
This page is not well edited yet. It contains a lot of random thoughts about this project, and will be edited – harshly – in coming months. Then it will be organized more like an F.A.Q. page.
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Most music recordings here are unique to this site, and they represent a variety of Utah’s historic classical styles. Our emphasis is on concert and stage works, but with a few educational or church music offerings. Plus links to a handful of recordings by others that fit nicely into the subject presented here. The music is organized into several lists by type, so use the “buttons” in the menu at the top of each page help you jump to other sections of themed lists.
The musical recordings and historical notes we have made for this site took a lot of work, so please don’t copy them or claim ownership of our work. We don’t own the original music, but we do have the right to claim the productions we labored to make for our recordings of that old music. These are not made by AI – each one was notated by hand. We are fine with having other sites link to these pages to share the recordings we have created.
The examples posted here have been prepared and recorded from works found in various sheet music archives, and the gallery will continue to grow as additional offerings are found and recorded. We welcome input and (legal) music sharing from others with an interest in this subject. More music files will be added to pages here later in 2026, divided by category as the site structure grows. Each of these pieces was once “new music”, and we hope this collection also helps inspire continued creativity in making new music in the future.
Note that this site is not specifically an LDS/Mormon music site, but due to the time and place being featured, many but not all of the composers presented here will be of that background. However, most of the music selections on these lists will be secular in nature. For those seeking LDS music specifically, please check out www.SingPraises.net which has exhaustive lists of such works, most with links to sheet music.
Instrumental music is currently the featured offering on this site, with historic vocal music recordings probably coming sometime in the future. This collection includes many piano solos, but also some chamber music, stage music, and even a few excerpts from large scale pieces for orchestra. If you are a performer with an interest in recording some music to share on this site, or already have music that is on topic on your own YouTube we might link to, please send us a note.
(For the curious, some of the examples of recorded music which are posted here started on a web site at www.yandro.com )
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This site grew out of my personal interest in classical music from my own part of the country. Curiosity led me to seek examples of classical music with roots in Utah, and to find a way to hear these works for myself. The next logical step was to find a way to present them for anyone else who might share my musical whims. So, a section of this site contains around 60 selected examples (as of late in the year 2025) with the plan and potential to eventually get up to something like 100 examples representing various styles over the decades.
There is also a section of original music stashed on this web site, composed by me, Douglas Wood of Utah. To avoid confusion, please note that there is another much more well known composer/performer with the same name. My apologies if you are mixing us up. You can see more about him at his web site.
I have been in and around music for over 50 years, playing in bands, orchestras and various community ensembles. For about 20 of those years I was also directly involved in concert and event production, including hands on experience doing “tech” for musicians of wildly different genres to help them put on quality shows. And through all those years I was always curious about people who made local music, and the works they made. So I read avidly, in old and new books and other info sources. Always looking for sheet music, in person and online. Plus taking note of books, historic events or other topics which caught my fancy to be used as a seed of inspiration for writing something.
While I was surrounded by music for decades, I only started writing some original music maybe 15 years ago. Putting part of my own output on this site is mainly a way to help organize and archive my own pieces.
My original music on this site is all protected by copyright, as is standard under the laws of the USA. For the video productions which include a mixture of older music and new video or graphics, ownership rights are mixed. When I include content from others it is because I have obtained the rights to use them through licensing, or believe them to be “Public Domain” or “Fair Use” status items or situations, meaning they are legal to use in this way. If you have reason to dispute that, please just let me know.
Software I use for music notation is usually “MuseScore.” It is a user friendly tool for automating and streamlining some of the technical aspects of composition and copying old sheet music into files to play as audio. It is a way to do typesetting of music notation and instantly hear your results, then save the piece as a music file and/or printed score when ready. For video editing my usual choice is “VSDC Video Editor,” which has a fairly steep learning curve but has the options I need. Both of those software offerings have free-to-use versions. Adobe Express & Canva are also useful if I need some different effects. Clip Art and stock Video clips usually come from Pixabay.com , but I also dabble in AI to make new versions of old photos.
For “live” recordings of selected pieces I have enjoyed using an online service which facilitates contact with freelance musicians and other creative artists who are willing to do small projects for hire. Fiverr.com has connected me with several very capable pianists, graphic artists, and other creators who will tackle a recording project if I can supply them with sheet music.
What about the site name? As this collection grew it seemed obvious that it should have a wed site name (URL) that matched the subject. So I reserved both “utahcomposers.com” and “utahclassical.com” Before securing those the project was hosted/posted on my personal web site named www.Yando.com. That word came to me from an author I adore, the late Manly Wade Wellman, whose wide ranging body of work included frequent references to folk music, and to a mythical mountain he called “Yandro” in the hill country of the American southeast. The term Yandro has also appeared in other contexts and other countries around the world, but for me it is a reminder of the abiding power of the creative process to expand the human experience. Whether it is just for oneself, or is shared with others.
Contact is welcome, and several options may work.
E-mail is welcome to ask questions or offer suggestions. Send a note!
Also, this web site is always in the formative stages, so I can be reached through my personal Facebook page.