NEW JEWEL IN L.A. DISNEY HALL GETS SET FOR ITS CLOSE-UP.

Byline: Fred Shuster Staff Writer

The new Walt Disney Concert Hall is not simply a posh playground for the Westside elite, Los Angeles Philharmonic officials insisted Wednesday during a sneak preview of the luxurious $272 million arts center set to open this fall.

The boldly designed music venue, now in the final stages of construction, will be the new home to the symphony orchestra, which had been based at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. The blocklong hall's striking stainless steel frame at First Street and Grand Avenue has a wood-paneled curved exterior and seating for 2,265 concertgoers.

Musicians have been slipping into the venue all week to help technicians fine-tune the acoustics. The first notes were played on the new cedar stage late Tuesday - but they were anything but subtle. L.A. Philharmonic music director Esa-Pekka Salonen invited players of the orchestra's loudest instruments - brass and percussion - to pound out ``Entry of the Gladiators,'' more commonly known as the ubiquitous theme of the circus.

``It was not Beethoven's Ninth,'' Salonen said, adding that the brash 19th-century carousel piece gave ample clues to the auditorium's sonic sensitivity.

Disney Hall, designed by Frank Gehry and inspired in part by venues in Amsterdam, Berlin and Tokyo, will officially open Oct. 23 after an inaugural week of community concerts, a civic dedication and black-tie galas. The first season includes performances of classical and contemporary works in which the L.A. Philharmonic will be joined by guest conductors and soloists, and events exploring baroque, world music and jazz.

At the preview Wednesday, which included a tour of the grounds and interior, Gehry called the new theater a ``living room for the city,'' while Salonen rebuked early gripes that the arts complex was developed to give the carriage trade yet another elite diversion.

``It's a totally wrong analysis,'' the conductor said. ``This is a building that can be shared by everyone. The accusations were wrong, but nonetheless disturbing.''

Deborah Borda, the philharmonic's executive director, said the hall would ideally open the door for the next generation of concertgoers as well as longtime patrons and first-time audiences. The Bunker Hill venue is part of the revitalization of the downtown corridor that's also seen construction of a new cathedral, a performing arts school and Staples Center, along with the renovation of the public library, the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Ahmanson Theatre.

Downtown ``has never been a more exciting and inviting destination for the community and the world,'' said Steven Rountree, president and chief operating officer of the Music Center.

Disney Hall is a striking achievement. The building occupies a 3.6-acre site with a street-level glass facade that allows views of the lobby, the box office, gift shop and restaurant. The main entrance is a sweeping expanse of glass, steel and a grand staircase and several atria. A large portion of the site is dedicated to an urban public park with gardens and ornamental landscaping.

Inside, audience members surround the orchestra, while a pipe organ holds a central position at the rear of the stage. The auditorium also features hardwood floors and a ceiling made of Douglas fir and a 36-foot- high rear window and skylights.

A 2,200-space parking garage beneath the hall will accommodate concertgoers as well as visitors to nearby county government buildings. Along with parking worries, other concerns include the number of women's restroom facilities, which was a much-discussed problem at the Chandler Pavilion. Officials said there will be considerably more facilities at the new venue.

But potential for discomfort at the new music center won't be entirely abated. Salonen said acoustic tests had revealed that the venue was unusually touchy when it comes to noisy patrons.

``The audience will have to learn how to cough quietly,'' he said. ``If somebody's cell phone goes off in this hall, I'll know immediately who it is. Keep that in mind.''

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Photo:

(1 -- 2 -- color) The Walt Disney Concert Hall stage, above, got its first, very loud sound check this week from players of brass and percussion instruments, who made the new venue ring with music. Left, Frank Gehry, the concert hall's architect, is seen outside the swooping, block-long structure. The new concert hall is scheduled to open in October with a series of events.

(3 -- color) Artist Kamil Beski holds a model of a rose that will be added to the garden outside the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer