Dr. Suzuki’s first Grand Celebration concert on April 16, 1961 brought hundreds of children together to play music in celebration of life, of joy, peace and forgiveness. In Tokyo’s Bunkyo Hall 400 children ages 5-12 from Dr. Suzuki’s Institute of Talent Education played the Twinkle variations followed by concerti of Vivaldi and Bach. View a recording from Japan of one such Grand Concert.
View more videos of Grand Concerts in Japan, including the famous speech by Pablo Casals, on this playlist.
Suzuki Association of Utah has kept the tradition of Grand Celebration Concerts for 35 years. Significantly, many of these concerts fell during historically landmark years – including Dr. Suzuki’s 100th birthday, in 2001 shortly after the terrorist attacks in the US and in 2020 at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“..What has impressed me most in this country [Japan] – the superlative desire of the highest things in life. And how wonderful is to see that the grown up people think of the smallest like this, as to teach them to begin with noble feelings, with noble deeds – and one of these is music. To train them to music, to make them understand that music is not only sound to have to dance or to have small pleasure, but such a high thing in life that perhaps it’s music that will save the world….I am happy to say in this moment is that [you are] a great people and [you are] not only great by [your] deeds, in industrial, in science, in art, but [you are], I would say, the heart of the heart. And this is what humanity needs first, first, first”
Transcription of Pablo Cassals’ 1961 speech
Past SAU Celebration Concerts
1989 Celebration I (Abravanel Hall) 1991 Celebration II (Abravanel Hall) 1994 Celebration III (Capitol Rotunda & Capitol Theater) 1998 Celebration IV: “Centennial Celebration” in honor of Dr. Suzuki’s 100th birthday (Huntsman Center) 2001 Celebration V: “A Celebration of the Heart” (Salt Lake Tabernacle) 2004: Celebration VI: “Shaping Hearts to Play” (LDS Conference Center) 2007: Celebration VII: “Nurtured by Love” (LDS Conference Center) 2010: Celebration VIII: “A Joyful Journey” (LDS Conference Center) & “Celebration of Harps” (Abravanel Hall) 2015: Celebration IX, “Where Love is Deep” (LDS Conference Center) 2020: Celebration X, “A Passport to a Better World” which featured a series of concerts by individual instrument groups.
50 years of Suzuki Association of America supporting students, teachers and parents
Watch SAU President BriAnn Christensen explain this years’ Celebration Format. After registration, you will be notified by Region Celebration Co-chairs and apprised of vital performance information.
Cache Valley Multi-Instrument Region May 9, 2026 @ 2:15 pm St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church Hyde Park, UT Region Celebration Co-chairs: Amy Wilhelm & Ryn Haubner-Sheridan
5 Piano Celebration Concert June 13, 2026 Libby Gardner Hall University of Utah 5 Piano Co-chairs: Alison West & Linda Garner
Salt Lake City Area Celebration Concert September or October 2026 (tentative) Region Celebration Co-chairs: Katelynn Swan, Amy Oswald & Katherine Baird (GMS)
Northern Utah Area Celebration Concert October 24, 2026 Austad Auditorium Weber State University Contact: Jenny Wadsworth or BriAnn Christensen
Southern Utah Celebration October 17, 2026 Heritage Center Cedar City Region Celebration Chair: Peter Romney
Utah County Celebration October 24, 2026 (tentative) Brigham Young University Region Celebration Co-chairs: Tammy Barney & Nicole Macias
