THE WRITING'S IN THE HALL SALONEN A RARE BREED OF COMPOSING CONDUCTOR.

Byline: David Mermelstein Correspondent

Since Leonard Bernstein's death nearly 15 years ago, only one celebrated conductor has gained a reputation as a composer: Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Now in his 13th year as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Salonen - who just renewed his contract for two more seasons - has never claimed that simultaneously being a creator and re-creator is easy. But thus far, he has handled both tasks with aplomb - producing serious, often critically acclaimed scores and leading thoughtful and exciting performances of other people's music.

And starting tonight through Feb. 25, local audiences can hear him conduct the Philharmonic in a relatively concentrated sampling of his music. Under the vaguely hip banner ``3X Salonen,'' and in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of his Philharmonic debut later this year, three separate programs will feature one piece by the conductor-composer alongside other works.

``I am worried about it appearing self-serving,'' Salonen says in a typically self-deprecating remark, ``but it's a thing I have to live with.''

Though his dual ambitions make him unusual among today's maestros, Salonen's approach was once common. In the early 20th century, many of the world's foremost conductors also composed. Gustav Mahler, who successively headed the Vienna Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic, completed nine symphonies and ``Das Lied von der Erde'' before his death at 50. And though the music of Wilhelm Furtwangler, the legendary head of the Berlin Philharmonic, enjoys little currency today, he took composing seriously. So did Otto Klemperer - who wrote six symphonies and nine string quartets - and Bruno Walter.

But after World War II, a new generation of conductors, exemplified by Herbert von Karajan, devoted all their energies to interpreting rather than also creating. Bernstein, who juggled international fame as a performer with composing for the theater and concert hall, and Pierre Boulez, whose musical tastes were anything but catholic, were their generation's exceptions. One obvious advantage to composing while serving as a music director is ready access to musicians. But composer-conductors must be careful about abusing such situations. ``I happen to be in a position of power,'' Salonen says, ``and I know my power is vastly more than most composers in terms of programming music.''

Yet though fame doesn't guarantee regular performances - Mahler was famously frustrated by the lack of interest in his scores - it clearly doesn't hurt, either. And Salonen is among the more successful composers of the era. His ``LA Variations,'' which had its premiere in 1997, has been performed some 50 times by various orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, according Chester Music, his publisher.

The ``3X Salonen'' series won't feature ``LA Variations'' or ``Foreign Bodies,'' another big hit for orchestra, but the concerts tonight and Friday include ``Wing on Wing,'' written in honor of the Philharmonic's move to the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

``It's my attempt to express what I felt the hall was all about after it was finished,'' says the composer. The piece precedes Debussy's ``Fantaisie'' and Stravinsky's ``Rite of Spring'' on the program.

On Saturday and Sunday, Salonen's ``Mania'' will be sandwiched between Stravinsky's ``Pulcinella Suite'' and Berlioz's ``Symphonie Fantastique.'' The piece was written for cellist Anssi Karttunen, a longtime friend of Salonen's, who will play it at these concerts.

And on Feb. 24 and 25, Salonen's ``Insomnia'' - a piece he describes as ``anguished'' and ``more neurotic than some of my other pieces'' - will share the bill with Bruckner's Symphony No. 7. ``It's my biggest hit in terms of how many performances it's had,'' says the composer.

Anthony Tommasini, the chief music critic of The New York Times, describes Salonen's music as ``extremely well-conceived and well-orchestrated.'' Though he is not unreserved in his praise - ``I sometimes feel there's energy for the sake of energy'' - he gives the composer high marks for daring. ``I've tended to like his most modern pieces,'' he says. ``I like it when he says, what the hell, I'm just going to go nuts, and practicality be damned.''

Salonen characterizes ``Wing on Wing,'' ``Mania'' and ``Insomnia'' as ``terribly hard to play.'' But he says he doesn't write such music to taunt orchestras. ``I enjoy challenging musicians without driving them absolutely crazy - somewhat crazy but not absolutely crazy,'' he says. He then recalls a rehearsal for the premiere of 'Wing on Wing' last spring: ``I said, 'If I'd made it any easier, it would be an insult.' And then someone from the back of the orchestra said, 'I think I would prefer the insult.' ''

3X SALONEN

What: The Los Angeles Philharmonic plays the works of its conductor, Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles.

When: 8 p.m. today and Friday (first program); 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday; 8 p.m. Feb. 24 and 11 a.m. Feb. 25.(Third program)

Tickets: $15 to $125. Call [phone]. Online at laphil.com.

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The compositions in ``3X Salonen'' include ``Wing on Wing,'' Esa-Pekka Salonen's tribute to the Walt Disney Concert Hall.