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Los Angeles Times
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
L.A. Phil's Gustavo Dudamel returns to the Bowl for a short concert run
The Los Angeles Philharmonic's departing music director Gustavo Dudamel will return to the Hollywood Bowl next week. Dudamel, the face of the classical music world in L.A. since his 2009 debut as music director, is in his penultimate season here before departing to lead the New York Philharmonic. Given recent federal travel bans on Venezuelans, he was forced to cancel local dates with his Simón Bolivar Symphony Orchestra in August, and he only had one week planned for conducting during the Bowl's summer season this year. The season's opening night at the Bowl was 'a relatively somber occasion, which, despite the lovely atmosphere, fit the mood of the times,' as Times critic Mark Swed said. So this one-week return with an exceptionally diverse bill will be a welcome occasion to see him in the twilight of his tenure in L.A. On Aug. 5, Dudamel (with pianist Seong-Jin Cho) will lead a program pulled from jazz giant Duke Ellington and French composer Maurice Ravel, including Ellington's 'Harlem' and 'Black, Brown and Beige' and Ravel's Piano Concert for the Left Hand and Piano Concert in G. The pairing will show how American jazz and the Harlem renaissance influenced and expanded possibilities for Ravel and European music of the era. He'll follow that up on Aug. 7 with Mahler's bombastic Symphony No. 1 'Titan,' with Vilde Frang playing Erich Korngold's violin concerto (a fitting spotlight on a golden-era Hollywood score legend). On Aug. 8-9, Dudamel will conduct John Williams' crowd-favorite 'Jurassic Park' score over a live screening of the summer blockbuster. Dudamel recently debuted with the L.A. Phil at Coachella, a long-awaited crossover event where the orchestra collaborated with pop stars including Dave Grohl, Zedd, Laufey and LL Cool J. For Los Angeles music fans who want to see Dudamel in the Bowl before he departs after next year's season, these are some of the best chances to do so in 2025.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Review: At 93, John Williams Unveils His First Piano Concerto
You could be forgiven for expecting the Boston Symphony Orchestra's concert on Saturday to be an evening of cinematic grandeur. At the top of the program was a premiere by John Williams, master of the old-school movie soundtrack, who for the past half-century has written brassy, memorable themes for blockbuster franchises like 'Star Wars,' 'Indiana Jones' and 'Jurassic Park.' It made sense that his first piano concerto, which premiered on Saturday at Tanglewood, the Boston Symphony's summer home in the Berkshires, would be paired with Mahler's First Symphony, a dramatically expansive view of nature and heroism. But the two pieces couldn't be more different. The Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, Williams's first at 93, is rooted in moods rather than big themes, or even a big sound. It comes less from the tunesmith mind behind the feather-light mischief of 'Harry Potter' and the unforgettable terror of 'Jaws,' and more from his parallel career as a composer for the concert stage. In that realm, his music is often subtler, and sometimes spikier, while just as skillful in its craft. With a running time of roughly 20 minutes, the concerto looks traditional at first glance: three movements, in the classic order of fast-slow-fast. (It will be performed by the New York Philharmonic next season, as well as the Boston Symphony again, with a recording by Deutsche Grammophon on the way.) Most Williams-esque is the enormous orchestra, which in film he has used to reach for the heavens of 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial' and conjure the solemn, stirring past of 'Lincoln.' As the concerto unfolded, conducted with traffic-guard control by Andris Nelsons, the Boston Symphony's music director, it became clear that the orchestration was mostly just for show. This is a work of extreme virtuosity, dispatched with cool ease by its soloist, Emanuel Ax, but also of restraint. Despite its traditional appearance, it's more like a triptych than a work of broadly conceived architecture, episodic and hauntingly atmospheric; passages emerge from silence, run their course and gently depart before new ideas take their place. Directions in the score suggest each movement is a portrait of a jazz pianist: Art Tatum, Bill Evans and Oscar Peterson. But the references are so oblique, more tone setters than specific homages, a listener doesn't need to know that beforehand. Perhaps it's best to go into this new concerto without a clichéd idea of Williams's sound, too. He is, beyond his 50-plus Academy Award nominations and Hollywood fame, one of the most well-rounded musicians alive, a chameleonic composer and conductor, especially of the Boston Pops from 1980 to 1993. Even his film scores reflect a greater range than his reputation would suggest. For every 'Superman' there is also a softly elegiac 'Schindler's List' or 'Memoirs of a Geisha.' Most relevant to the new concerto may be 'Catch Me if You Can,' whose jazzy score has a slithering, freewheeling sensibility to match Steven Spielberg's seductive view of the 1960s. There's a freedom, too, in the concerto's opening. On Saturday, Ax played three chiming chords that quickly returned with a wave of extra notes, followed by a rush of virtuosity. The piece wasted no time, like a pop song that starts with the chorus. Ax had a lot of wiggle room, encouraged by the score's directions like 'a piacere' ('at your pleasure') and 'take time' to approach the precise notation with looseness. When other instruments join in, they mainly serve as support; this is a concerto that spotlights its soloist more than it integrates it with the ensemble. Another soloist opens the second movement, though: the Boston Symphony's principal viola, Steven Ansell, with discursive, almost improvisatory lyricism. The piano joins for a dreamy duet, and entire pages go by with almost the whole orchestra at rest. That is, until the finale, which storms in with the angular boogie-woogie of Stravinsky's Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra. As is often the case with Williams's concert works, musical ideas tend to be strung together without a flowing sense of purpose. Passages have neat divisions rather than transitions, like with the cues of a soundtrack; they fascinate in the moment, but not in the aggregate. Still, this concerto wins over its audience by the end. The strings let out runs and punchy bursts, and a muted trombone melts with glissandos, all while the pianist races to the big chords of the finish line. That may be the most traditional thing about this piece, a satisfying signal to start clapping. Which is what happened on Saturday, and the applause rose to cheers as well when Williams appeared onstage in a wheelchair. This response was touching; his relationship with the Tanglewood audience reaches so far back that he has provided musical joy to several generations of fans there. And while it may have taken until his 90s, he had given them a piano concerto. They welcomed it with roars, even as Williams held his hands together and rested his head on them, gesturing that it was time for bed. Boston Symphony Orchestra Performed on Saturday at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass.
Time of India
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
K-Pop Meets Classical Music: The Cultural Crossover Captivating Audiences in 2025
The Unlikely Celebrity Crossover That's Breaking the Internet Picture this - you're at a classical piano recital, expecting nothing but Beethoven and Bach, when suddenly you spot V from BTS casually chatting with acclaimed film director Park Chan-wook in the front row. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now This isn't some fever dream or fan fiction - it's the new reality at Seoul's Arts Center, where K-pop royalty and classical music virtuosos are creating the most unexpected cultural mashup of 2025. The phenomenon reached peak buzz when pianist Seong-jin Cho performed his solo recital on June 17th. While the audience came for Beethoven and Brahms sonatas, they got an unexpected bonus - a star-studded front row featuring Park Chan-wook (known for his love of baroque music and Shostakovich) sitting right next to BTS's V. The moment these two cultural icons greeted each other warmly, every phone in the venue was secretly recording, and social media exploded with sightings. But wait, it gets better. Park Bo-gum showed up at the New York Philharmonic's performance on June 27th, where Polish pianist Krzysztof Zimerman was the featured soloist. Not only did he attend the concert, but he also joined the orchestra's exclusive reception afterward - because apparently, classical music networking is the new VIP experience. The crossover doesn't stop there. Cha Eun-woo (yes, the ASTRO member who makes hearts flutter across Asia) was spotted at pianist Yunchan Lim's performance with the Paris Orchestra on June 10th. Meanwhile, RM from BTS had his own classical moment, bumping into director Park Chan-wook at conductor-pianist Chung Myung-whun's chamber music concert on July 3rd. These aren't just casual drop-ins either. Social media is flooded with photos of K-pop stars genuinely mingling with classical musicians - DJ Peggy Gou posing with V and Seong-jin Cho, or RM sharing candid moments with Park Chan-wook and Chung Myung-whun. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It's like watching two completely different worlds collide in the most beautiful way possible. Where Hallyu Meets High Culture in the Most Unexpected Way The phenomenon has gotten so intense that people are jokingly calling the Arts Center "K-pop's new headquarters". But honestly? This cultural fusion feels more authentic than any manufactured celebrity collaboration we've seen in recent years. What makes this even more fascinating is how naturally these interactions are happening - there's no forced PR moments or awkward photo ops. These stars are genuinely appreciating the artistry. Think about it - in a world where everything feels scripted and calculated, seeing V from BTS genuinely enjoying a Beethoven sonata or Park Bo-gum chatting with world-class musicians feels refreshingly real. It's like when you discover your favorite Bollywood actor is secretly a classical music enthusiast, or when a cricket star shows up at an indie music festival just because they love the art form. The ripple effects are already visible. Concert halls that were once considered "stuffy" or "elitist" are suddenly seeing younger audiences. Ticket sales for classical performances have reportedly increased by 40% compared to last year, with many concerts selling out within hours of celebrity sightings being reported. The Seoul Arts Center has even had to implement a new booking system to handle the surge in demand. What's particularly interesting is how this trend is spreading beyond just attendance. Several K-pop artists have started incorporating classical elements into their music, while classical musicians are experimenting with more contemporary arrangements. It's creating a beautiful cross-pollination of artistic ideas that neither genre could have achieved alone. The Secret Behind This Cultural Revolution So what's driving this unexpected romance between K-pop and classical music? Music columnist Yoo Jung-woo points out something fascinating - while celebrities occasionally attended classical performances before, what's new is actual idol stars showing up to support classical performers who have idol-level popularity themselves . The game-changers here are Seong-jin Cho and Yunchan Lim . Cho's 2015 Chopin Competition victory and Lim's 2022 Van Cliburn Competition win created something unprecedented - K-pop-style fandoms for classical music . These aren't just talented musicians; they're cultural phenomena with dedicated fan bases that rival any K-pop group. But here's where it gets really interesting - these classical stars have something that even K-pop idols sometimes lack: complete artistic freedom. They don't have to worry about image management, dating scandals, or corporate restrictions. They can purely focus on their craft, and that authenticity is incredibly appealing to both celebrities and audiences who are tired of manufactured entertainment. Lee Ji-young from Daewon Cultural Foundation offers another perspective that hits different - just like novelist Han Kang's Nobel Prize made literature suddenly "hip," classical music's apparent detachment from worldly chaos is making it look incredibly cool to younger audiences. There's something refreshingly authentic about classical music in our hyper-digital, constantly-connected world. The timing couldn't be more perfect either. As K-pop reaches global saturation and faces increasing scrutiny about industry practices, classical music offers a pure, uncontroversial form of artistic expression. It's sophisticated, timeless, and carries none of the baggage that sometimes comes with pop culture.
New York Times
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
‘I'm Not That Into Classical Music. But I'm Into Dudamel.'
Sketch Pad 'I'm Not That Into Classical Music. But I'm Into Dudamel.' A few hundred New Yorkers took in an evening of the New York Philharmonic and fireworks at Cunningham Park in Queens. Share full article
The Independent
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Carnegie honors 20 'Great Immigrants,' including composer Tania León, for 20th anniversary
Tania León, the noted composer and conductor who also co-founded Dance Theatre of Harlem, never planned on emigrating to the United States. She wanted to move to Paris. When León received the opportunity to leave Cuba on a resettlement flight to Miami in 1967, she took it, thinking she would eventually end up settling in France where she would join the Conservatoire de Paris and become a concert pianist. Instead, she moved to New York and within months met Arthur Mitchell, the New York City Ballet dancer who achieved international acclaim and integrated the art form as its first Black star. 'You cannot predict the future,' León told The Associated Press in an interview. 'By a chance moment, I bumped into the man that in a way changed my life… and then he spoke to me about the creation of something that he had in mind that later on became the Dance Theatre of Harlem and then I was involved in all of this.' 'All of this' – her composing, her conducting of the New York Philharmonic, her work on Broadway – led to León being honored Thursday by the Carnegie Corp. of New York as part of its 20th class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans. 'I am just overwhelmed with this latest recognition about what I have been able to contribute because I didn't do it with the purpose of gaining awards and things like that,' Leon said. 'I think that one has to convey the gratitude for the opportunities that I have received since I arrived." The 20 members of this year's class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans represent a wide range of immigration journeys, but they share a desire to give back to the country that has become their home. What the Carnegie initiative celebrates is also how American immigrants have improved their country. 'For 20 years, our Great Immigrants public awareness initiative has been a reminder that many of the most influential figures in our country have been distinguished naturalized citizens, like our founder Andrew Carnegie, born in Scotland,' Carnegie President Dame Louise Richardson -- also a naturalized American citizen, born in Ireland -- said in a statement. 'The U.S. is a nation of immigrants and our ongoing support of nonpartisan organizations that help establish legal pathways for citizenship continues to enrich the very fabric of American life.' Nobel prize winner Simon Johnson honored British-born Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management professor Simon Johnson, another honoree from this year's Great Immigrants class, said immigrants have also enriched the American economy. 'If people come to the United States, with very few exceptions, they come because they want to work,' said Johnson, who won the 2024 Nobel memorial prize in economics with two other American immigrants, Turkish-born Daron Acemoglu and fellow Brit, James Robinson. 'They want to work hard. They want to be productive. They want to improve their lives and have better futures for their kids… That dynamism we have is a big part of what's going well in many parts of the U.S.' Johnson said the immigrant perspective helped the team on its prize-winning study, which studied countries and found that freer, open societies are more likely to prosper. And the support that academia in the United States provides is also helpful. 'American universities have incredible opportunities -- lots of time for research, really interesting teaching, great students -- it's an amazing combination,' he said. 'I've been incredibly lucky because it's a space that allows you to work hard and get lucky.' This year's honorees are named as immigration becomes an increasingly contentious issue. President Donald Trump's administration is looking to add $150 billion to support his mass deportation agenda, which has drawn protests, as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement looks to arrest 3,000 people in the country illegally each day. Voto Latino CEO Maria Teresa Kumar selected Maria Teresa Kumar, president and CEO of the civic engagement nonprofit Voto Latino and another of Carnegie's 2024 honorees, said the anti-immigration sentiment is painful on so many levels. 'A multicultural America is our secret superpower,' said Kumar, who emigrated from Colombia with her family when she was four years old. 'There are plenty of people in foreign interference that try to divide our country around race and status because they know that multiculturally, when human capital is what's going to determine the 21st Century, we are truly unstoppable… It's that diversity and value of thought that makes us really strong. And what's happening right now seems like we are impeding our progress because we're not seeing the bigger picture.' Kumar and Voto Latino have been outspoken with their criticism of the Trump administration and have directed some of their resources toward keeping immigrants informed of their rights and offering advice to deal with ICE raids. Geri Mannion, managing director of Carnegie's Strengthening U.S. Democracy Program, which oversees the Great Immigrants, Great American awards and other civic participation initiatives, said they will continue handing out the awards because immigrants help the United States on multiple levels. Carnegie is also marking the 20th anniversary with a free comic book that celebrates the lives of previous honorees, including Rock and Roll Hall of Famer David Byrne, Peabody Award-winning comedian Mo Amer, and Jim Lee, the chief creative officer of the DC comics universe. The comic will also be used by the National Council of Teachers of English to develop lesson plans and other educational resources. 'In other countries, you could be there three generations, but you might be seen still seen as the other,' she said. 'In the U.S., you're considered American the moment you take that oath. And nobody thinks twice about it.' ——- Full list of 2025 class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans Carnegie Corp. of New York's 2025 Class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans is: Calendly founder and CEO, Tope Awotona, originally from Nigeria; Moungi Bawendi, Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor of chemistry (France); Helen M. Blau, Director of the Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology and Stanford University professor (England); Roger Cohen, New York Times journalist and Paris Bureau Chief (England); Akiko Iwasaki, Yale University School of Medicine professor of Immunobiology, Dermatology, and Epidemiology (Japan); comedian/actor Maz Jobrani (Iran); MIT Sloan School of Management entrepreneurship professor Simon Johnson (England); Kynisca CEO Michele Kang, owner of the Washington Spirit (South Korea); Flex-N-Gate CEO Shahid Khan (Pakistan); AAPI Equity Alliance executive director Manjusha P. Kulkarni (India); Voto Latino CEO María Teresa Kumar (Colombia); composer/conductor Tania León (Cuba); Northwell Health vice president Sandra Leisa Lindsay (Jamaica); Howard Hughes Medical Institute professor and microbiologist Luciano Marraffini (Argentina); Yale professor of astronomy and physics Priyamvada Natarajan (India); comedian/artist Kareem Rahma (Egypt); California U.S. Rep. Raúl Ruiz (Mexico); Manoochehr Sadeghi, grand master of the santur, the Persian dulcimer (Iran); former prima ballerina Yuan Yuan Tan, of the San Francisco Ballet (China); and Avi Wigderson, mathematics professor at the Institute for Advanced Study (Israel). _____ Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP's philanthropy coverage, visit
