By Robert D. Thomas
Music Critic
Pasadena Star-News/San Gabriel Valley Tribune/Whittier Daily News
A shorter version of this article was first published today in the above papers.
THE PASADENA POPS AND THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY ARBORETUM have finalized a contract for the orchestra to appear at the Arcadia facility beginning next summer. The three-year agreement with an "evergreen" clause will also see the Pops become the Arboretum's presenting partner. Dates for the Pops' concerts in 2012 are June 26, July 21, August 18 and September 8. Happily for fans of both the Pops and the California Philharmonic -- which shifts from the Arboretum to next-door Santa Anita Racetrack next summer -- that means the two organizations will not conflict on dates, a good thing from a parking and traffic point of view. The Pops also envisions "family concerts, outdoor theatre, silent films, as well as Asian-influenced performances, to name a few," according to Paul Jan Zdunek, CEO of the Pasadena Symphony Association; programming details will follow in the coming weeks. MORE
MUSE-IQUE, the new ensemble headed by former Pops music director Rachael Worby, will appear in a free concert of American music on the steps of Pasadena's City Hall at 6 p.m. on Sept. 11 commemorating the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
THE LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC has promoted outgoing associate conductor Lionel Bringuier to the new post of resident conductor through the 2012/2013 season. MORE
GUSTAVO DUDAMEL, music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, will be featured on a new DGG box set of CDs next month conducting the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra of Sweden (one of three orchestras he currently helms) in Bruckner's Symphony No. 9, Sibelius's Symphony No. 2 and Nielsen's Symphonies No. 5 and. 4 (The Inextinguishable).
Gramophone Magazine (which is published in England) devotes its cover story for the August 2011 issue to Dudamel and this new recording. It's an interesting article but not easy to find. The print edition costs $10 (U.S.) and the only way to find it online at this point is to subscribe ($63.14 per year or $16.21 for three months). Like other digital magazines, you get the full pages and have to scroll through them (i.e., they're not converted to easily readable text). However, the publication does offer a 30-day money-back guarantee if you're not satisfied.
Los Angeles Times Music Critic Mark Swed dwells on Dudamel's upcoming DGG release, which Dudamel recorded at the beginning of his tenure with the Swedish orchestra (he became that ensemble's music director in 2007; next season will be his sixth and last in that capacity, although he will continue to work with the ensemble as its "honorary conductor").
Two things make this upcoming recording intriguing, as Swed points out in the article. First, the works are pieces that Dudamel has yet to conduct in Los Angeles. Second, the performances show him at a very young age (he was 26 when he came to Sweden) and he talks with Swed about how his concepts have changed -- and are changing -- even in just a few years. The article shows us a different side of Dudamel than we've seen so far in L.A. BTW: there's a great photo of young Gustavo -- wearing glasses and with short hair. You might not recognize him without the caption!
THE L.A. PHIL has announced the 2011-2012 participants in the Dudamel Fellowship Program: Joshua Dos Santos of Venezuela, Mihaela Cesa-Goje of Romania (the first woman ever selected for the fellowship), Courtney Lewis of Northern Ireland and Boston, and Santtu Rouvali of Finland.
Each of the four conductors spends 4-6 weeks working with Dudamel, Phil musicians and with students in LAPO education programs. During their time (Santos, Lewis and Rouvali will have two time blocks), the fellows will both observe and gain hands-on experience. The Dudamel Fellowship was instituted in 2009. One of the inaugural class, Perry So, is leading Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings on Tuesday's Hollywood Bowl program and a member of last year's class, Joshua Weilerstein, was recently named as one of two assistant conductors at the New York Philharmonic (MORE). Details on the new class are HERE.
JOANN FALLETTA, who once headed up the Long Beach Symphony, has renewed her contracts with the Buffalo Philharmonic and Virginia Symphony and been named principal conductor of the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The Buffalo Philharmonic contract takes her through the 2015-2016 season; she was the first woman to head a major orchestra when she took over that position in 1999 at the age of 45. The Virginia Symphony contract is for another three years with an option for an additional two years. She becomes the first American and first woman to serve with the Ulster Orchestra.
Violinist JOSHUA BELL, who is appearing with the Los Angeles Philharmonic next week at Hollywood Bowl (DETAILS), has been named music director of the
Academy of St.-Martin-in-the-Fields in London. According to Gramophone, Bell will conduct performances from the violin chair as opposed to standing on a podium (at the Bowl he will lead the Phil in Vivaldi's The Four Seasons while playing the solo parts). Kenneth Sillito remains as the ASMF artistic director and will also conduct. Pianist Murray Perahia has been the group's principal guest conductor for several years.
THE L.A. PHIL has announced the 2011-2012 participants in the Dudamel Fellowship Program: Joshua Dos Santos of Venezuela, Mihaela Cesa-Goje of Romania, Courtney Lewis of Northern Ireland and Boston, and Santtu Rouvali of Finland.
Each of the four conductors spends 4-6 weeks working with Dudamel, Phil musicians and with students in LAPO education programs. During their time (Santos, Lewis and Rouvali will have two time blocks), the fellows will both observe and gain hands-on experience. The Dudamel Fellowship was instituted in 2009. One of the inaugural class, Perry So, is leading Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings on Tuesday's Hollywood Bowl program and a member of last year's class, Joshua Weilerstein, was recently named as one of two assistant conductors at the New York Philharmonic (MORE). Details on the new class are HERE.
UPCOMING NOTABLE CONCERTS: The Cal Phil plays today at 2 p.m. in Walt Disney Concert Hall and concludes its 2011 summer season on Aug. 21 at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and 22 at Disney Hall (DETAILS)
Southwest Chamber Music concludes its summer festival at The Huntington Library tonight at 7:30 p.m. and August 20-21, also at 7:30 p.m. (DETAILS)
John Mauceri returns to conduct the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, which he founded 20 years ago, on Aug. 19, 20 and 21, playing the score to Walt Disney's 1940 movie classic "Fantasia" while the movie is shown on the Bowl's large screens. (DETAILS). This is one of my "don't miss" concerts of the Bowl season.
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(c) Copyright 2011, Robert D. Thomas. All rights reserved. Portions may be quoted with attribution.
