Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra

 

founded in 1919 by William Andrews Clark, Jr. After his death the Southern California Symphony Association was formed in 1934 to sponsor the orchestra. It was housed in Philharmonic Auditorium from 1920 until 1964, when it moved to the newly constructed Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in the Music Center of Los Angeles County. The orchestra holds summer concerts in the Hollywood Bowl, which seats 20,000 people. Music directors have included Otto Klemperer (1933–39), Alfred Wallenstein (1943–56), Eduard van Beinum (1956–59), Zubin Mehta (1962–78), Carlo Maria Giulini (1978–84), and André Previn (1984–89). Previn remained as conductor until 1992, when Esa-Pekka Salonen became music director.

Los Angeles Philharmonic
Background information
Also known as	LA Phil; LAP
Origin	Los Angeles, California, USA
Genre(s)	Classical
Occupation(s)	Symphony Orchestra
Years active	1919–present
Label(s)	Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, EMI, London, Sony
Associated acts	Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Website	www.LAPhil.com
Members
Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen Associate Conductor Alexander Mickelthwate Joana Carneiro Consulting Composer Steven Stucky President Deborah Borda
Former members
Founder William Andrews Clark, Jr. Walter Henry Rothwell
Notable instrument(s)
Concert Organ Glatter-Gotz / Rosales Pipe Organ Violin Benny 1729 Stradivari Perkins 1728 Stradivari Violoncello General Kyd 1684 Stradivari

The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LAP) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California, United States.

History

Founded in 1919 by William Andrews Clark, Jr. with Walter Henry Rothwell as its conductor, it played its first concert in the same year, eleven days after its first rehearsal. The Orchestra's first home was at Fifth and Olive, in a venue that had previously been known as Clune's Auditorium, but was renamed Philharmonic Auditorium. From 1964 to 2003, the orchestra played its concerts in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion of the Los Angeles Music Center. In 2003, it moved to the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall next door. In the summer, the orchestra plays outdoor concerts at the Hollywood Bowl. Since its founding, the LA Philharmonic has played at least one concert a year in its sister city, Santa Barbara, California, presented by the Community Arts Music Association.

Subsequent music directors have included Artur Rodziński, Otto Klemperer, Eduard van Beinum, Zubin Mehta, Carlo Maria Giulini and André Previn. Some of the more notable principal guest conductors associated with the orchestra have included Michael Tilson Thomas, Simon Rattle and Leonard Slatkin who concludes his guest position at the Hollywood Bowl in 2007 ^[1]. Other conductors with whom the orchestra has had close ties include Erich Leinsdorf, Kurt Sanderling, Pierre Boulez, Leonard Bernstein, and Christoph von Dohnányi.

Since 1992, Esa-Pekka Salonen has been the LAP's music director. In April 2007, it was announced that Esa-Pekka Salonen will step down as the LAP's music director at the end of the 2008-2009 season, and become the LAP's Music Director Laureate. With the 2009-2010 season, Gustavo Dudamel will be his successor.^[2][3][4]

Recordings

The LA Philharmonic performed the music in the pilot film to Battlestar Galactica, composed by Stu Phillips and Glen A. Larson. The LA Philharmonic also performed the first North American concert for the popular Final Fantasy franchise game music, Dear Friends: Music From Final Fantasy by Nobuo Uematsu.

The orchestra occasionally made 78-rpm recordings and LPs in the early years with Alfred Wallenstein and Leopold Stokowski for Capitol Records, and began recording regularly in the 1960s, for English Decca, during the tenure of Zubin Mehta as music director. A healthy discography continued to grow with Carlo Maria Giulini on Deutsche Grammaphon and André Previn on both Philips and Telarc Records. Michael Tilson Thomas, Leonard Bernstein, and Sir Simon Rattle also made several recordings with the orchestra in the 1980s, adding to their rising international profile. In recent years, Esa-Pekka Salonen has led recording sessions for Sony and Deutsche Grammophon.

Music directors

Gustavo Dudamel has been selected as music director designate until 2009 when Salonen is expected to step down.

1992-present Esa-Pekka Salonen 1985-1989 André Previn 1978-1984 Carlo Maria Giulini 1962-1978 Zubin Mehta 1956-1959 Eduard van Beinum

1943-1956 Alfred Wallenstein 1933-1939 Otto Klemperer 1929-1933 Artur Rodziński 1927-1929 Georg Schnéevoigt 1919-1927 Walter Henry Rothwell

Principal guest conductors

2005-present Leonard Slatkin 1981-1994 Simon Rattle 1981-1985 Michael Tilson Thomas

References

External links

• Los Angeles Philharmonic Official website
• Los Angeles Philharmonic Association Official website
• Walt Disney Concert Hall Official website
• Hollywood Bowl Official website
• Discography

Los Angeles Philharmonic Music Directors
Walter Henry Rothwell (1919) • Georg Schnéevoigt (1927) • Artur Rodziński (1929) • Otto Klemperer (1933) • Alfred Wallenstein (1943) • Eduard van Beinum (1956) • Zubin Mehta (1962) • Carlo Maria Giulini (1978) • André Previn (1985) • Esa-Pekka Salonen (1992)

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