Podcast
LA Phil: Inside the Music
Hosted by Los Angeles Philharmonic · EN
Get more than ever from your LA Phil concert experience when you dive into the music with your host, KUSC’s Brian Lauritzen, whose informative podcasts provide a deeper look at our concert programming and performances thereof. For more info, visit laphil.com/insidethemusic.
9episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring" • FRI / APR 12, LA Phil 2018/19
Apr 3, 201900:21:33Tap to summarizeStravinsky's earth-shattering "Rite of Spring" is a musical work inextricably linked to the history of the LA Phil. In fact, the orchestra's 1928 rehearsal of the piece at the Hollywood Bowl marked the first-ever recording of the iconic work. About This Performance:Following Stravinsky’s early memorial for his teacher Rimsky-Korsakov (lost until recently!), Salonen leads two of Stravinsky’s ritualistic ballet scores, concluding with Salonen’s crackling specialty and signature work with the LA Phil, The Rite of Spring. Program:STRAVINSKY: Funeral SongSTRAVINSKY: Agon STRAVINSKY: The Rite of Spring Artists:Los Angeles PhilharmonicEsa-Pekka Salonen conductor APR 12–13, 2019 – 8:00PM Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
Buddha Passion • FRI / FEB 8, 2018/19
Jan 24, 201900:09:45Tap to summarizeThe composer for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon creates another stunning, evening-length oratorio. About this Performance: Following on the stunning success of his Water Passion after St. Matthew, Tan Dun (composer for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) has created another evening-length oratorio, this time based on stories inspired by the Dunhuang Cave paintings. Program: Tan DUN: Buddha Passion (U.S. premiere, LA Phil commission*) Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Gustavo Dudamel conductor Sen Guo soprano Huiling Zhu mezzo-soprano Kang Wang tenor Shenyang bass-baritone Tan Weiwei Female Indigenous Singer Batubagen Male Indigenous Singer Chen Yining Fantan Pipa Soloist and Dancer Los Angeles Master Chorale Grant Gershon Artistic Director Los Angeles Children’s Chorus Fernando Malvar-Ruiz Artistic Director FRI / FEB 8, 2019 - 8:00PM Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
MTT and Tchaikovsky 6 • FRI / NOV, 30 2018/19
Nov 26, 201800:20:38Tap to summarizeIt’s a night of passionate music as Michael Tilson Thomas teams up with the LA Phil. About this Performance: L.A.’s own Michael Tilson Thomas partners with the orchestra for his own latest work, followed by the passionate emotional depths of Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique.” Program:Michael TILSON THOMAS: Four Preludes on Playthings of the WindIntermission TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No. 6, "Pathétique" Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Michael Tilson Thomas conductorMeasha Brueggergosman mezzo-soprano FRI / NOV 30, 2019 - 8:00PM Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
Schumann Focus: Das Paradies • FRI / JUN 1, 2017/18
May 21, 201800:20:59Tap to summarizeDudamel teams with iconic director Peter Sellars and innovative video artist Refik Anadol for the poignant and rarely performed oratorio Das Paradies und die Peri. About this Performance: Although his life was difficult, to say the least, ending prematurely in madness, Robert Schumann nonetheless composed music that elevates us through its pure spirit and unique personal character. Over three weekends, Gustavo Dudamel delves deeply into Schumann’s four symphonies, two greatest concertos, and a rarely heard oratorio, offering us a portrait of the man through his finest creations. The oratorio Das Paradies und die Peri (Paradise and the Peri) is seen as one of Schumann’s major achievements; even Wagner had positive words for it. The story, which originated with 19th-century Irish poet/singer Thomas Moore, was translated by Schumann and a friend. It tells of a peri – a fairy-like spirit from Persian mythology, somewhere between an angel and a devil – who has been cast out of heaven. Its only way back is by finding the gift that God will like best, which – spoiler alert! – turns out to be a tear from a repentant old sinner who has observed a child praying. For our production, incomparable operatic mastermind Peter Sellars teams with media artist Refik Anadol to create a never-before-seen staging, bringing the season to a moving conclusion. Program:SCHUMANN: Das Paradies und die Peri, Op. 50 (Part One, Part Two)Orchestration: 3 flutes (1 & 2 = piccolo), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (bass drum, cymbals, triangle), harp, strings, mixed chorus, and vocal soloists First Los Angeles Philharmonic performances These concerts, the conclusion of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Schumann Focus, celebrate a number of firsts. Of course, these will be the first performances of what promises to be another provocative staging by director Peter Sellars, this time in collaboration with media artist Refik Anadol. Notably, too, these will be the Philharmonic’s first-ever performances of Robert Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri. And, most importantly, for almost everyone in the audience, this will be the first time they have ever experienced this masterpiece in person. Make no mistake, it is a masterpiece, and if you are one of the fortunate few who have attended a performance of Das Paradies und die Peri, take a moment to assure your nearby seatmates that they are in for a rare treat. Consider this statistic: during Schumann’s lifetime, Das Paradies was second only to his “Spring” Symphony as the composer’s most frequently performed large- scale work. In fact, his mature reputation throughout the musical world was largely built on the acclaim and popularity that Das Paradies accrued. It was greeted so enthusiastically upon its premiere in Leipzig in December of 1843 that an encore performance was held the following week. And within just a few years it would be heard well beyond the borders of Germany; from Amsterdam to Prague, from Zürich to Riga, Das Paradies was a hit. By 1847, it was scheduled to be performed under the aus- pices of the American Musical Institute in New Yo
Transcribe →
Composer Salonen: Wing on Wing • FRI / FEB 16, 2017/18
Feb 14, 201800:17:16Tap to summarizeOur Conductor Laureate revisits the piece he composed for the opening of Walt Disney Concert Hall alongside music of Beethoven and Mozart. About this Performance:The second program celebrating our Conductor Laureate as a composer concludes with the latest edition of his Wing on Wing, the piece he wrote for the opening of Walt Disney Concert Hall. Inspired by Frank Gehry’s sailing imagery – also the source of his title – Salonen takes full advantage of the orchestra and the Hall’s brilliant acoustics, such as placing sopranos across from each other in the Orchestra East and West sections of the audience. It’s a celebration in sound of a long-held dream come true. Launching this marvelous program is young Norwegian violinist Vilde Frang, whose profound musicianship and unassailable virtuosity have already established her throughout Europe as a leading light in the music world. She makes her much-anticipated LA Phil debut performing Beethoven’s towering Violin Concerto, a masterpiece of noble lyricism, which set the bar for all such works to come. Program:BEETHOVEN: Violin ConcertoMOZART: The Impresario, K. 486Esa-Pekka SALONEN: Wing on Wing Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Esa-Pekka Salonen conductorVilde Frang violinHila Plitmann sopranoSo Young Park sopranoJoshua Dennis tenorChristopher Job bass-baritone FRI / FEB 16, 2018 - 8:00PM Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
Mälkki, Strauss & Dance • FRI / JAN 19, 2017/18
Jan 11, 201800:15:11Tap to summarizeOur Principal Guest Conductor builds powerful momentum – with help from Tero Saarinen’s dance company. About this Performance: Principal Guest Conductor Susanna Mälkki cuts across a vast range of German music, featuring our brilliant Principal Cellist in Bernd Alois Zimmermann’s highly colorful and uniquely creative concerto from 1966, complete with dancers. The massive orchestra Strauss requires for his Alpine climb creates imposing force. Program:Johann Sebastian Bach (arr. Webern): Ricercar Bernd Alois Zimmermann: Concerto for cello and orchestra, en forme de pas de trois (U.S. premiere)STRAUSS: An Alpine Symphony Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Susanna Mälkki conductorRobert deMaine celloTero Saarinen Company FRI / JAN 19, 2018 - 8:00PM Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
Mozart 1791: Scenes from The Magic Flute • FRI / OCT 6, 2017/18
Oct 1, 201700:25:12Tap to summarizeDudamel soars as he conducts selections from Mozart’s enchanted opera. About this Performance: For his second week focused on Mozart’s final year, Dudamel leads the gorgeous Clarinet Concerto – featuring one of the world’s greatest clarinet soloists – and highlights from the enchanted opera The Magic Flute. Both works were premiered shortly before Mozart’s untimely death. Program:MOZART : Clarinet Concerto, K. 622MOZART : Selections from The Magic Flute, K. 620 Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Gustavo Dudamel conductorMartin Fröst clarinetJulia Bullock PaminaPaul Appleby TaminoElliot Madore PapagenoJessica Pratt Queen of the Night FRI / OCT 6, 2017 - 8:00PM Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
Thibaudet Plays "The Mysteries of Light" • FRI / MAR 17, 2016/17
Mar 10, 201700:14:39Tap to summarizeAbout this Performance:Prolific Scottish composer James MacMillan, who writes complex yet approachable, spiritually centered music, has built a concerto/tone poem on the five Luminous Mysteries, the most recently added section of the Catholic practice of praying the Rosary. He composed the work specifically for Thibaudet, who plays it here. French conductor Stéphane Denève concludes the program with two works from his homeland, the first of which is the luscious and often delicate suite that Gabriel Fauré created from his incidental music for Maurice Maeterlinck’s tragic Symbolist play Pelléas et Mélisande, the same play that Debussy used for his groundbreaking opera. Finally comes Debussy’s symphonic poem depicting the sea, an orchestral landmark of French Impressionism. Program:BRITTEN: Passacaglia from Peter Grimes (c. 16 minutes)James MACMILLAN: Piano Concerto No. 3, The Mysteries of Light (c. 25 minutes)Intermission FAURÉ: Suite from Pelléas and Mélisande (c. 18 minutes)DEBUSSY: La mer (c. 25 minutes) Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Stéphane Denève, conductorJean-Yves Thibaudet, piano Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →
Dances of Death • FRI / FEB 10, 2016/17
Feb 3, 201700:16:43Tap to summarizeAbout this Performance:Composer/pianist/conductor Thomas Adès crowns a provocative program with his macabre “dance of death” for two singers and orchestra, “his longest, most ambitious and most astounding orchestral composition yet.” (The New York Times) Totentanz has its origins in a 15th-century German frieze (destroyed in WWII) depicting death as a skeleton who dances a series of people, from the most exalted to the most innocent, to their ultimate fate. In addition to the images, the frieze included a poem describing this morbid dance, and those words became the text that Adès set for mezzo-soprano and baritone, the latter always giving voice to the Grim Reaper. This ambitious work gives us “a glimpse of the future of symphonic music,” according to New York magazine. For this evening, Adès as conductor has programmed two works that refer to death, as well as his 2009 cello work Lieux retrouvés, with a new orchestral accompaniment. Program:SIBELIUS: The Bard (c. 6 minutes)SAINT-SAËNS: Danse macabre (c. 8 minutes)ADÈS: Lieux Retrouvés (U.S. premiere, LA Phil commission with generous support from Raulee Marcus, Stephen Block, and Robert Braun and Joan Friedman (c. 17 minutes)Intermission ADÈS: Totentanz (West Coast Premiere) (c. 35 minutes) Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Thomas Adès, conductorSteven Isserlis, celloSimon Keenlyside, baritoneChristianne Stotijn, mezzo-soprano Upcoming concerts: www.laphil.com/calendar Inside the Music schedule, details, and videos: www.laphil.com/insidethemusic
Transcribe →