REVERSAL OF FORTUNE? NEW MANAGING DIRECTOR MUST HANDLE DISTINGUISHED L.A. PHIL WITH CARE.Byline: David Mermelstein Correspondent With the Los Angeles Philharmonic's announcement earlier this year of its 2001-02 season, the orchestra fully inaugurated the era of Deborah Borda, the managing director it poached from the New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is the oldest active symphony orchestra in the United States, organized during 1842. Based in New York City, the Philharmonic performs most of its concerts at Avery Fisher Hall and has long been considered one of the best orchestras in the world. in late 1999. The orchestra has lately had something of a rough time administratively, for though conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen has offered nearly a decade of strong musical leadership, the organization has suffered reversals in the front office. Indeed, Borda was brought in precisely to right this listing ship, to erase a mounting deficit and to lend the Philharmonic the strong - dare we say autocratic? - hand it enjoyed during Ernest Fleischmann's directorship, a period that stretched from 1969 to 1998. Yet an observer considering next season's schedule can't help but wonder if there may be a musical price to pay for Borda's trimming of the sails. Compared with this season at least, next year's concerts seem underwhelming un·der·whelm tr.v. un·der·whelmed, un·der·whelm·ing, un·der·whelms To fail to excite, stimulate, or impress: . While this year, the Philharmonic's ambitious Stravinsky Festival was a success, no such concentrated dose of a single composer's music enriches next season's programming. Instead, we get a Shostakovich celebration that is projected to take five years, a two-weekend Mozart festival in April that pales in comparison to what the San Francisco Symphony  This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.You can assist by [ editing it] now. is undertaking just two months later and five concerts vexingly vex tr.v. vexed, vex·ing, vex·es 1. To annoy, as with petty importunities; bother. See Synonyms at annoy. 2. To cause perplexity in; puzzle. 3. called Schoenberg Prism. In each case, the featured composer's scores will be augmented with music by others. The Philharmonic's list of guest soloists is similarly watered down. This season, the orchestra welcomes 43 visiting artists; next season, only 29 will appear. And the number of musicians making subscription debuts next season is also down, though there are some notable names, including conductors James Conlon and Daniel Harding, sopranos Hildegard Behrens and Andrea Rost, mezzo-soprano Dolora Zajick and pianist Helene Grimaud. Even more disconcerting dis·con·cert tr.v. dis·con·cert·ed, dis·con·cert·ing, dis·con·certs 1. To upset the self-possession of; ruffle. See Synonyms at embarrass. 2. , the Philharmonic's Celebrity Recital series will be halved, from eight concerts this season to four in 2001/2002, all of them inexplicably piano recitals. On the positive side, the Philharmonic will present two world premieres (Leon Kirchner's Second Violin Concerto and Theodore Shapiro's Chamber Symphony, one American premiere (H.K. Gruber's ``Aerial'') and two Los Angeles premieres (Osvaldo Golijov's ``Last Rounds'' and Sofia Gubaidulina's ``Offertorium''). Two foreign orchestras will visit the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is one of the halls in the Los Angeles Music Center (which is one of the three largest performing arts centers in the United States). The Music Center's other halls include the Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson Theatre, and Walt Disney Concert Hall. under the Philharmonic's auspices: Russia's St. Petersburg Philharmonic The St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra was formed in 1882 and is Russia 's oldest symphony orchestra. It was initially known as the "Imperial Music Choir" and performed privately for the court of Alexander III of Russia. led by Yuri Temirkanov and Australia's Sydney Symphony led by Edo de Waart Edo de Waart (b. June 1, 1941) is a Dutch conductor of opera and symphony orchestras, particularly well-known as an orchestra builder havings elevated the status of a number of orchestras. . Golijov, an Argentine composer, is one of two musicians connected with the Philharmonic's On Location project, an artist residency program to be inaugurated next season. The other is French pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet. Artists returning to the Philharmonic include conductor Franz Welser- Most; pianists Emanuel Ax, Leif Ove Andsnes Leif Ove Andsnes is a Norwegian pianist. He studied with Jiří Hlinka at the Grieg Academy of Music in Bergen. He is an ardent champion of the works of Edvard Grieg. , Yefim Bronfman, Alicia de Larrocha Alicia de Larrocha y de la Calle (born 23 May, 1923) is a Spanish pianist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Spanish_pianists, considered one of the greatest of her generation. She was born in Barcelona, and began studying piano with Frank Marshall in Spain at age three. and Lars Vogt; and violinists Joshua Bell, Sarah Chang, Hilary Hahn, Viktoria Mullova and Pinchas Zukerman. Despite the scaling back, there is clearly much to savor at the Philharmonic next season. But troubling signs shouldn't be ignored. It takes years, even decades, to build up an orchestra, though hardly any time at all to dash that progress. Salonen, Borda and all connected with the Philharmonic should be mindful that a civic treasure is in their keeping. Minor adjustments can have major repercussions. After watching the Philharmonic rise to the top ranks of American orchestras, Angelenos don't want to see it start slipping. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Next season's L.A. Philharmonic programming includes a seemingly watered-down Shostakovich celebration. |
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