2003 ENTERTAINMENT: THE HAPPIEST NEW SOUND ON EARTH DISNEY CONCERT HALL DRAWS PRAISE.

Byline: Fred Shuster Staff Writer

If it hadn't been thought of in global terms before, the Los Angeles arts scene has been viewed through an international lens since the opening of the Walt Disney Concert Hall in late October.

Perched atop downtown's Bunker Hill, the new home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic has drawn acclaim from architecture critics and music aficionados alike. Performers as diverse as the Berlin Philharmonic, film composer John Williams and bluegrass musician Alison Krauss have already filled every one of the venue's 2,265 seats. In a nod to Hollywood, the red-carpet world premiere of ``The Matrix Revolutions'' took place under the klieg lights at the fashionable address on South Grand Avenue.

More than two months after its gala opening, Disney Hall is still the talk of the town.

Like the blockbuster it is, Disney Hall took ages to complete - some 17 years, in fact. Designed by Los Angeles architect Frank Gehry, the daring $274 million glass- and steel-clad auditorium is graced with crystal-clear acoustics and an elegant curved wood interior that evokes a ship's billowing sails. In a typically morose part of downtown, Disney Hall is an exuberant sight.

As former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan put it at the glittery ribbon-cutting: ``We're no longer in La-La Land.''

In harmony with the city's residents, the venue itself multitasks. Just outside its rear doors along Flower Street are expansive public gardens, ornamental landscaping and fountains offering a respite from the surrounding hustle and bustle. In addition, there are two outdoor amphitheaters, including the Keck Children's Amphitheatre holding 300 spectators and a second space that accommodates an audience of 120, plus an area for preconcert events. On the other side of the building, the venue's massive glass walls open onto Grand Avenue, giving Disney Hall an inviting atmosphere that encourages pedestrians to make it a stop during the workday.

Of course, considering all the fundamentally opposing forces needed to put the project together, the road to Disney Hall nearly had a far different ending. After initial funding more than 15 years ago, the on-off project stalled until 1998, when all sides pulled together to finally declare liftoff on what would be the fourth addition to the Los Angeles Music Center.

One of the more unusual aspects of the place is the ``vineyard'' shape of the hall, with a curved wood ceiling designed to retain the acoustic properties of the familiar ``shoe-box'' concert hall. Inside, audience members surround the orchestra platform for the kind of interactive and intimate experience serious music aficionados fondly recall of some European venues. At the rear of the stage is a pipe organ with 6,125 wooden pipes resembling an explosion of giant pick-up sticks.

Except for jazz pianist Keith Jarrett, who complained loudly and often about the sound of the hall during a semi-amplified trio gig there, musicians have raved about the experience. Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor and music director of the L.A. Philharmonic - while admitting that an adjustment period is nonetheless to be expected for both audience and musician - said a gem like Disney Hall doesn't happen often.

``It's kind of a funny thing for me to admit at the age of 45, middle age,'' he said. ``But I know that anything of this magnitude - it's very unlikely that it will ever happen again.''

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(1 -- 2 -- color) The Walt Disney Concert Hall, top, was the site of a preview of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, above, in which more than 3,000 children from about 65 Los Angeles County schools were welcomed.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer