NEWS: L.A. Phiilharmonic 2013-2014 season to fete Disney Hall's 10th anniversary

By Robert D. Thomas
Music Critic
Pasadena Star-News/San Gabriel Valley Tribune/Whittier Daily News

Some orchestras struggle to find an overarching theme for their seasons but the Los Angeles Philharmonic has not experienced that problem for a decade. Its 2013-2014 season, announced Monday, predictably centers around the 10th anniversary of Walt Disney Concert Hall, Frank Gehry’s iconic building that is both an acoustical marvel and a world-famous landmark for Los Angeles.

The Phil’s upcoming season will be headlined by its celebration of Disney Hall entitled “Inside Out” (the title comes from Gehry’s own description of the hall, which he said was designed from the inside out — i.e., he started with the interior of the hall itself and then build the now-famous shell to surround it).

The season will begin not in the hall itself but in three “neighborhood concerts” at venues yet to be named on Sept. 25, 26 and 28. On Sunday, Sept. 29, Dudamel will conduct the Phil and the Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (YOLA) in a joint concert, the first official appearance by YOLA musicians in Disney Hall.

The “opening night” gala on Sept. 30 will feature cellist Yo-Yo Ma — he filled a similar role 10 years ago. Then come two weeks of subscription concerts led by Dudamel and two weeks of concerts led by the Phil’s conductor laureate, Esa-Pekka Salonen sandwiched around a “Green Umbrella” concert led by Salonen featuring the world premiere of Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels, which is described as “a combination of rock, jazz and orchestral music.”

As it continues to dedicate a healthy chunk of its programming to contemporary music, the Phil will present 11 world premieres, four U.S. premieres and four West-Coast premieres. Sprinkled into that group will be 13 LAPO commissions.

Beginning his fifth season as L.A. Phil music director, Dudamel will lead 13 weeks of subscription concerts and will take the Phil on a North American tour, with U.S. stops in San Francisco, Kansas City, New York City, Boston and Washington D.C., along with visits to Toronto and Montreal. The tour will alternate two programs: Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 with John Corigliano’s Symphony No. 1, and Brahms’ Symphony No. 2, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1 (with Yuja Wang as soloist) and a new work by Icelandic composer Daniel Bjarnason.

The Simón Bolivár Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, Dudamel’s other music directorship, will return to Disney Hall in February and join with the Phil in “TchaikovskyFest,” a series that will present all six of the composer’s symphonies, the violin concerto and Variations on a Rococo Theme, and a reprise of the program from two years ago presenting with the Bolivars playing the Hamlet, Tempest and Romeo and Juliet Fantasy-Overtures accompanied by staging and narration. Both orchestras will join together in the final concert on March 2 in a program that will include the 1812 Overture.

Interestingly, “TchaikovskyFest” omits any of the piano concertos, although the ubiquitous first shows up in the first subscription concerts, with Yefim Bronfman as soloist.

Dudamel and the Phil will present a staged production of Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte in May to complete its triology of Mozart/DaPonte operas. Other “minifestivals” taking place during the upcoming season will include “Minimalist Jukebox,” a reprise of the concept first presented in the 2005-2006 season. Once again, John Adams is both curator and conductor. Among the programs will be the world premiere of an organ concerto by Terry Riley, with Cameron Carpenter as soloist, and a presentation of the Rome section of Philip Glass’ the CIVIL warS, with Grant Gershon leading the Los Angeles Master Chorale.

Except for Manfred Honeck, all of the guest conductors have appeared at Disney Hall prior to next season and all are conducting for one week at a time. Notably absent from the list is Zubin Mehta.

You can get the complete season by clicking HERE. If you want to print the entire press kit, click HERE (but make sure you’ve got lots of paper in your printer).
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(c) Copyright 2013, Robert D. Thomas. All rights reserved. Portions may be quoted with attribution.

Comments

[Bob Montgomery]

Also noticably absent is any visiting orchestras. A serious omission in my opinion.

(I don't count the Bolivars in this category, which heretofore has included the best in the world)