Artists’ Profiles

Benjamin Manis

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Conductor

American conductor, Benjamin Manis, joined the Utah Symphony as Associate Conductor in September 2022, leading the orchestra at Abravanel Hall, at the Deer Valley® Music Festival, and on its upcoming statewide tour. Before moving to Salt Lake City, Manis spent three seasons as Resident Conductor of the Houston Grand Opera, making his debut with Verdi’s Rigoletto. Other highlights of his time in Houston include performances of Carmen, Roméo et Juliette and The Snowy Day. He led four world premieres, among them the 2020 world premiere of Marian’s Song with the subsequent HGO Digital filmed version and Miller Outdoor Theatre performances of the same work. Manis returned to HGO in the 2022–23 season to lead productions of Tosca and El Milagro del Recuerdo.

Winner of the 2023, 2022, and 2019 Solti Foundation US Career Assistance Awards, Manis has served as cover conductor for the St. Louis, Dallas, and National Symphonies, working with conductors Gianandrea Noseda, David Robertson, and Stéphane Denève.

LeAnn Rimes

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Vocals

LeAnn Rimes is an international multi-platinum-selling acclaimed singer and ASCAP Award-winning songwriter who has sold more than 48 million units globally, won ten Grammy® Awards; 12 Billboard Music Awards; two World Music Awards; three Academy of Country Music Awards; two Country Music Association Awards, and one Dove Award.

At 14, Rimes won “Best New Artist” making her the youngest recipient to take home a Grammy® Award. Rimes has been honored with the Ally of Equality Award by the Human Rights Campaign for over 20 years of equal rights support, the 2019 HOPE Award for Depression Advocacy, and 2009 ACM Humanitarian Award, among other recognitions, solidifying her dedication to making the world a better place.

The powerhouse vocalist lit up television screens throughout the 2018 holiday season as she starred and served as an Executive Producer in Hallmark’s It’s Christmas, Eve, which earned the highest TV original movie debut, premiering to more than 4.3 million viewers. In 2020, Rimes shined the brightest and won season four of FOX’s The Masked Singer.