Americans see their patriotic music in different ways. Some people think country music perfectly sums up what is great about the country -- a free-born, homegrown spirit.
Others see classic rock, one of America's great exports to the world, as being the perfect musical symbol for our freedom-celebrating national holiday.
For others, only the bombastic thrill of a live orchestra does justice to our country's birthday.
Are you taking in only one kind of music at midsummer? Maybe one of the arena shows below, offered this Fourth of July weekend, will help you break free of the cycle.
Country fan? Catch a classical show. Or if you are all about the strings, why not sample some rock this year instead?
No one way is right or wrong when it comes to music on a hot summer evening with fireworks in the offing.
Classic rock
Rock 'n' roll and summertime do seem to go hand in hand. You know what's bound to come out of the woodwork along with the beer and barbecue. More than one guitarist across this great land, with visions of grandeur, will try to pull off Jimi Hendrix's arrangement of "The Star-Spangled Banner." "Born to Be Wild" is another tune that often appears at picnics and luaus across the nation.
This year, the Ogden celebration, Hot Rock'n 4th, is featuring a tribute band to the British group that took our shores by storm. The band Imagine: Remembering the Fab Four plays at 3 p.m. Saturday. The event's ever-popular demolition derby is at 6 p.m. Fireworks close the night at 10 p.m. Rain or shine, there will be scads of activities for the whole family.
Gates open at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Ogden Stadium, 668 17th St., Ogden. Advance tickets are $12 for adults, $7 for ages 4-12. Day of, the price rises to $15, $10 for the younger set. Those under age 4 are admitted free. Tickets are available in advance from Smith's Tix, (800) 888-TIXX.
Country
Within this genre is everything from rockabilly to that brand of stadium rock with a definitive twang. The music is every bit as American as apple pie a la mode.
Pop country chanteuse Carrie Underwood headlines Stadium of Fire, a concert and pyrotechnic extravaganza. She became an overnight sensation when she won the fourth season of "American Idol." But unlike many from the show, her fame has had legs.
The music begins at 8 p.m. Saturday, with fireworks following the concert, at LaVell Edwards Stadium, 106 Smith Fieldhouse Road, Brigham Young University, Provo. Tickets are $30-$120. For tickets, go to www.freedomfestival.org/stadium-of-fire.
Classical pops
Ever since classical music came to be, countries have reached for it to show their patriotism: John Philip Sousa and his marches, "America the Beautiful," "The Star-Spangled Banner," and the big boy of the patriotic holidays, the "1812 Overture" with its cannon corps.
The Utah Symphony knows how to do such tunes just right, and will do so under the summer skies with pieces like Dvorðk's Symphony No. 9: "Largo," a traditional 7th-inning-stretch take on "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," and Steffe's arrangement of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic."
The program is at 8 p.m. today at Sundance Resort, 8841 Alpine Loop Road, Sundance ($15). The program is repeated at 8 p.m. Saturday at Deer Valley Amphitheater, 2550 Deer Valley Drive, Park City ($25-$65).
Tickets for both shows may be purchased via ArtTix, 888-451-ARTS.
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