STRINGS OF A DIFFERENT SORT PUPPETS BRING FRESH FACES TO THE PHIL.Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer The greatest danger for an orchestra, says Los Angeles Philharmonic 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. director Esa-Pekka Salonen Esa-Pekka Salonen ( ) (b. June 30 1958) is a prominent Finnish orchestral conductor and composer. , is repetition. ``Of course, Disney Hall is a wonderful antidote,'' says Salonen, entering his 15th season at the baton. ``There are so many layers in music that, apart from being inspiration itself, it technically helps us to find new aspects to the music we perform.'' Even so, for its season-opening gala at the Walt Disney Concert Hall This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please help Wikipedia by adding references. See the for details. This article has been tagged since September 2007. , the Los Angeles Philharmonic needed something original, something different. Something with a Twist. Which is, in fact, exactly what they will present. Bookending renditions of Ravel's ``Mother Goose Mother Goose, name associated with nursery rhymes. Most English nursery rhymes have been ascribed to Mother Goose. The origin of the name is still a matter of dispute. Suite'' and ``Bolero'' Thursday will be a Phil premiere: ``Master Peter's Puppet Show Master Peter's Puppet Show (El retablo de Maese Pedro) is a puppet-opera in one act, composed by Manuel de Falla to a Spanish libretto he based on an episode from Don Quixote by Cervantes. ,'' the rarely performed, 27-minute composition by Spanish composer Manuel de Falla Noun 1. Manuel de Falla - Spanish composer and pianist (1876-1946) Falla . And it has been designed and directed by acclaimed New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of puppeteer Basil Twist. No strings attached You read that right: puppets amid the orchestra. And we're not talking about simple hand-held marionettes. ``Puppet theater has changed quite a bit from what most of us have traditionally viewed as puppet work,'' says Chad Smith For other persons named Chad Smith, see Chad Smith (disambiguation). Chad Smith (born 25 October 1961, Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.) the drummer of the American alternative rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. , vice president of artistic planning for the Phil. ``In the works of Twist and (director/puppet creator) Julie Taymor, these are puppets that are actually constructed sometimes larger than the people who are operating them.'' ``When we started doing this, we knew it was going to either be Basil or Julie Taymor,'' adds Philharmonic president/CEO Deborah Borda Deborah Borda is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. External links
Big as life ... and bigger Taken from a chapter of Miguel de Cervantes' epic ``Don Quixote,'' which has the delusional Don watching a puppet show and attacking the stage, Twist's ``Master Peter'' features life-size puppets and a 16-foot tower that contains the puppet theater. The puppet plan was hatched by Salonen and enthusiastically endorsed by Phil executives who had seen Twist's work in New York. Twist heads the Dream Music Puppetry puppetry Art of creating and manipulating puppets in a theatrical show. Puppets are figures that are moved by human rather than mechanical aid. They may be controlled by one or several puppeteers, who are screened from the spectators. Program at New York's HERE Center. ``We're always trying to have a different take on the gala and do something a little out of the ordinary,'' says Borda. ``And we have a history of trying ambitious things.'' ``We've played with Bugs Bunny and other cartoon characters, mascots, dancers and marching bands,'' adds Ben Hong, assistant principal cellist, referring to the Phil's summer work at the Hollywood Bowl. ``But I don't think I've ever played with a puppet before. At first I was wondering if they'd hire puppets to play the orchestra parts.'' Not exactly, although the size of the orchestra shrinks to 20 members for ``Master Peter.'' Configured as a play within a play, a life-size Don Quixote puppet (with voice sung by Kyle Ketelsen) and a boy (soprano Awet Andemicael) watch a Punch & Judy-like rendition of Charlemagne knight Don Gaiferos releasing his wife Melisendra from the captivity of rampaging Moors. Quixote gets a bit confused and charges the stage, believing the action to be real. New York's Eos Orchestra commissioned Twist to create a version of ``Master Peter'' in 2002. Twist knew the music, which has become something of a standard for puppeteers, but had never seen it staged. ``It was originally commissioned for the Princess de Polignac's salon in Paris,'' Twist explains of de Falla's composition. ``When you read the libretto libretto (ləbrĕt`ō) [Ital.,=little book], the text of an opera or an oratorio. Although a play usually emphasizes an integrated plot, a libretto is most often a loose plot connecting a series of episodes. , you wonder how the hell they did this in a woman's salon apartment in Paris.'' Twist's performance has since been remounted in New Jersey, Illinois and Cleveland, with Twist himself stepping in to grab the strings during the Cleveland performance. All of the previous venues, however, were substantially smaller than the Walt Disney Concert Hall. ``I was relieved to see how beautiful and intimate Disney Hall was,'' says Twist. Following the opening gala, the Phil settles in for a weekend engagement of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 3. The work was to have been sung by mezzo mez·zo n. pl. mez·zos A mezzo-soprano. mezzo Adverb Music moderately; quite: mezzo-forte Noun pl -zos soprano Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Lorraine Hunt Lieberson (March 1 1954 – July 3 2006) was a renowned American soprano then mezzo-soprano, originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. [1]. Her Life , who died this summer after an illness. Michelle DeYoung takes over for Lieberson, and the concert is dedicated to the late singer's memory. Evan Henerson, (818) 713-3651 evan.henerson@dailynews.com LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC OPENING GALA Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. When: 7 p.m. Thursday. Tickets: $1,000 to $10,000. (323) 850-2000. Also: Mahler's Symphony No. 3, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $39 to $135. CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Life-size puppets will grace the stage at Disney Hall on Thursday night in ``Master Peter's Puppet Show,'' a rarely performed 27-minute composition. (2) Basil Twist rehearses with an armored puppet Don Quixote, who also watches a puppet show -- a play within a play. In the puppet performance, Don Quixote confuses the play he watches for real action and charges the stage. |
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