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Empty seats, no Dudamel: L.A. Phil opens its Hollywood Bowl season on somber notes

BBG News

On a tranquil Tuesday evening, the Los Angeles Philharmonic commenced its 103rd season at the Hollywood Bowl. The night was graced with a captivating twilight, a radiant moon, and a balmy climate that seemed straight from paradise. Traffic flowed unusually smoothly, adding to the serenity of the atmosphere. The program showcased beloved works by Rachmaninoff and Prokofiev, providing an ideal escape from daily worries as one passed through the swift and hospitable security checkpoints.

Although the Bowl may seem a world apart, it’s never too detached from reality. Regrettably, an enigmatic travel ban from Venezuela has caused a cancellation of one of this season’s highlights. Consequently, Gustavo Dudamel will be spending only a week at the Bowl during his second-to-last summer as L.A. Phil music director due to his inability to bring his Simón Bolivar Symphony Orchestra in August.

The Bowl’s amenities have undergone some improvements, but the amphitheater still seems delicate following the wildfires in January. The military presence in our city streets has given Los Angeles an uneasy vibe. Could this have played a role in the unusually low turnout for the Bowl’s opening night? Despite strong ticket sales, the large number of empty seats raises concerns about no-shows.

On Tuesday evening, a somewhat subdued Los Angeles Philharmonic summer series kicked off. Unlike previous years, this season featured fewer grand events, with no opera performances and multiple debut conductors at the Bowl. The program also emphasized Russian music. On this particular Tuesday, which carried a somber air despite its pleasant ambiance, seemed to reflect the prevailing mood of our times.

Thomas Sondergard, Danish conductor and current Music Director of Minnesota Orchestra, recently made his debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic (L.A. Phil). While every debut by a conductor, especially those invited back to the Bowl, may spark speculation about becoming the L.A. Phil’s next music director following Dudamel’s departure for New York next year, it is essential to remember that performances at the Bowl are often temporary engagements.

In a different phrasing, Sondergard showcased a mix of grandiosity, at times explosive, other times formal. However, the first-night performance presented its own set of challenges, including technical issues with sound, video, an orchestra recently returning from break and dealing with limited rehearsal opportunities.

In this performance, Sondergard and the Bowl didn’t seem to excel with Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s A Minor Ballade, which kicked off the program. This ballad, while not one of Taylor’s finest pieces, is a less impressive work from a composer whose more substantial compositions from the late 19th and early 20th centuries deserve renewed attention.

In Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on Paganini’s Theme, the soft blue stage lighting unexpectedly intensified to a startling orange hue. The volume increased, highlighting the piano soloist, Kirill Gerstein, in an overpowering manner against the muted orchestra. The video screens veered off course, displaying unusual close-ups of fingers and lips, or trying out bizarre, humorous visual effects that didn’t quite fit the music.

The situation was overwhelming (and in the orchestra’s case, lacking), but Gerstein is an enthralling pianist regardless of the circumstances. He has recently unveiled a radiant recording of a piece specifically composed for him and vibraphonist Gary Burton by the late jazz legend Chick Corea. Thomas Adés penned his complex Piano Concerto with him in mind. Among the numerous impressive recordings of Rachmaninoff’s frequently recorded Second Piano Concerto, Gerstein’s latest one with the Berlin Philharmonic might be the most potent.

In every note, whether significant or minor, played during the Rhapsody, he delivered with deliberate force and meaning. The orchestra’s powerful, resonant response to Sondergard’s contribution was undeniably impactful. Under any circumstances, it was an exceptional performance that left a lasting impression.

1944 marked the year that Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony was completed, a symphony written a full decade following Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody. In those ten years, the world underwent significant transformation.

Entertainment & Arts

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art unveiled its latest structure through the medium of music, much like it did back in 1965. To mark the start of a fresh chapter, an evening filled with jazz music was arranged for LACMA.

After the 1917 revolution, both composers left Russia, but their connections to their homeland differed significantly. Unlike Rachmaninoff, who never went back, he maintained a strong, traditional Russian identity. He penned his Rhapsody in peaceful Switzerland before moving to the US and passing away in Beverly Hills in 1943.

Prokofiev lived for extended periods in Paris and America as a modern composer, yet the allure of his homeland proved irresistible, and he eventually returned to Russia, even amidst the artistic limitations imposed by Stalin’s regime. His Fifth Symphony was composed during an era of intense national pride, and it made its debut in Moscow in January 1945, only a short while after Russia successfully repelled Nazi aggression.

Sondergard’s portrayal seemed to lack the emotional depth that André Previn brought to the Fifth Symphony, particularly during his debut as L.A. Phil music director in 1985. His rendition conveyed a sense of impending doom in the grand first movement, swift and ominous energy in the scherzo, dark and brooding atmosphere in the slow movement, and ultimately, a triumphant climax in the final movement.

On the same day when the U.S. renewed its support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia, an exceptionally grand presentation took place. In contrast to a few skeptics three years ago who questioned whether Russian music should be played, many orchestras had canceled performances of Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture.” However, the annual “Tchaikovsky Spectacular” at The Bowl still featured this Overture, and interestingly, it started with the Ukrainian National Anthem.

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This summer, Russian tunes fill the Bowl, featuring the traditional presentation of Tchaikovsky (as part of the “Classical Pride” event on Thursday), a week dedicated to Rachmaninoff, plus additional performances of Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and Stravinsky. It was with Tchaikovsky that Dudamel first made his U.S. appearance at the Bowl; everything else that followed is history.

For over a century, Russian music has played a pivotal role at The Bowl. It’s thanks to Russian artists and musicians that L.A.’s artistic landscape looks as vibrant today. Moreover, the ways in which Russian composers navigated themes like militarism, nationalism, and political repression seem remarkably pertinent now.

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2025-07-10 21:01

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