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RIP Mitchell Peters, former LA Phil Principal Timpani
Sad news yesterday from the Los Angeles Philharmonic that Mitchell Peters, member of the orchestra from 1969 until his retirement in 2006, has passed away at the age of 82. Mr. Peters was named...
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Some thoughts as the LA Phil names Simon Woods as their new CEO
The Los Angeles Philharmonic announced yesterday that Simon Woods will be their new Chief Executive Officer effective January 22, 2018. The 54-year old native of London has been President and CEO of...
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LA Phil’s announcement of 2018/19 season delayed
Expectations have been rather high for the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s 2018/19 season. After all, they’ve had some rather impressive seasons leading up to it, and you’d guess that they’d make an even...
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My $0.02 on the 2018/19 LA Phil season: beyond the obvious awesomeness, my 3...
After teasing its 2018/19 season in November and postponing its originally planned announcement by an extra couple of days, the Los Angeles Philharmonic finally dropped the other shoe last week and...
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Ojai Music Festival names LA Phil’s Chad Smith to be their new Artistic Director
The Ojai Music Festival announced this morning that Chad Smith will be their new Artistic Director beginning in 2020. Mr. Smith will take over for Thomas W. Morris, Ojai’s Artistic Director since...
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Memorial Day music & video: Tom Hooten, US Marine Band play “With Malice...
For Memorial Day 2018, I offer this video of a 2016 performance by the US Marine Band (“The President’s Own”) featuring soloist Thomas Hooten, Los Angeles Philharmonic Principal Trumpet, playing an...
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Comings and goings at the LA Phil and beyond (End of Summer 2018 edition)
Hello again, folks. Long time no chat. Hope you’re well. It’s obviously been a while, and so let’s start getting caught up by talking about some key personnel moves across the Southern California...
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Tom Hooten will record John Williams Trumpet Concerto with composer...
Thomas Hooten, Principal Trumpet of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, had a great idea: record the John Williams Concerto for Trumpet and Piano. He mentioned it to the distinguished composer who thought...
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A chat with Ramón Ortega: the new LA Phil Principal Oboe and Colburn...
This evening, Ramón Ortega headlines a chamber music concert at the Colburn School’s Zipper Hall featuring oboe-centric works by Mozart, Koechlin, and Gounod. It marks the first official public...
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Jeffrey Strong wins LA Phil 3rd/Utility Trumpet audition
Jeffrey Strong will be the new 3rd/Utility Trumpet of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The Fresno native has been 2nd Trumpet with the St. Louis Symphony since 2015. Prior to that, Mr. Strong served as a...
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Zubin Mehta named LA Phil “Conductor Emeritus,” will return in 2019/20 season
Zubin Mehta has been named Conductor Emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Simon Woods, CEO of the orchestra, announced the news from the stage of Walt Disney Concert Hall before the second half...
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Dudamel, 20 LA Phil members, appear tonight w/ Beck on “The Late Late Show...
Are you a fan of Beck? Or the Los Angeles Philharmonic? Or Gustavo Dudamel? Maybe all of the above? If any of those apply to you, stay up and watch — or set your TiVo or other DVR of choice for —...
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ICYMI: Video of Beck, Dudamel, and LA Phil on “The Late Late Show with James...
I know some of you didn’t get a chance to see Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic join Beck perform his song, “Tarantula,” on “The Late Late Show.” Or even if you did, you might want to...
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The Stravinsky snippet quoted by Michael Jackson, New Order, U2, Prince, NWA,...
The music of Igor Stravinsky takes over Walt Disney Concert Hall for three different sets of programs over the next two weekends, led by one of its most ardent advocates, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and played...
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A chat with Simon Woods: the LA Phil’s CEO talks about his first 18 months in...
When Simon Woods arrived in Los Angeles, he had a very tough act to follow. Deborah Borda announced in March of 2017 that she would leave her position as CEO of the Los Angeles Philharmonic to return...
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Simon Woods resigns as LA Phil CEO
Got the whopper of a press release below announcing that Simon Woods, the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s CEO, has resigned. There certainly was no indication of anything wrong during my conversation with...
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Comings and goings at the LA Phil and beyond (Fall 2019 edition): new CEO,...
After many requests, I’m very happy to bring back my regular look at the personnel moves within the Los Angeles Philharmonic, plus a couple of noteworthy moves at the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra....
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REVIEW: Dudamel, Bullock, Thibaudet, and LA Phil revel in unabashed Americana...
Gustavo Dudamel has been in charge of the Los Angeles Philharmonic for a decade now, and so we should be able to easily answer the question: what can we — should we — expect from one of their concerts...
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My $0.02 on Gustavo Dudamel extending his LA Phil contract to 2025/26 season
It looks like “The Dude” is gonna be sticking around for a little while longer. The Los Angeles Philharmonic announced earlier today that Gustavo Dudamel, the orchestra’s Music & Artistic...
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Watch tonight — or stream online right now: LA Phil’s 100th Anniversary...
Hello everyone. Long time no chat. Hope you’re all safe, healthy, and in good spirits during these challenging times. I know I’ve been mostly incommunicado, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic...
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