|
Ed Roach
|
 |
« on: October 25, 2009, 10:52:56 AM » |
|
Los Angeles Philharmonic Presents 'West Coast, Left Coast' Festival, 11/21 - 12/8
The distinctive qualities that make California a sympathetic refuge for creative renegades - from its unique landscapes that have inspired numerous masterpieces to the juxtaposed attitudes of the state's northern and southern regions - are all explored musically in the Los Angeles Philharmonic's West Coast, Left Coast festival. Curated by the LA Phil's new Creative Chair, John Adams, the unprecedented three-week multi-disciplinary series of events acknowledges the West Coast's, particularly California's, distinct musical culture and attempts to answer the questions - how did this come about and what does it all mean? In focusing on California as a land of possibility, the varied events that make up the festival provide attendees an opportunity to immerse themselves completely in music from many sources, as well as in symposia, film screenings and other events, all focusing on the West Coast philosophy.
"The West Coast, Left Coast festival is a celebration of music that is, in a sense, native born, arising from the curious and unique nature of the California sensibility," says Adams. "When it comes to music we are still a young culture, younger than the East Coast and younger for sure than Europe or the great traditions of the Orient and the Middle East. I am not even certain that there is a single ‘West Coast sensibility.' Part of the aim of the festival is to discover whether there is indeed such an identifying characteristic in what we do. Certainly what seems to set us apart as West Coast composers is a particular absence of orthodoxy and an openness to influences and stimuli that may come from any number of sources, whether it's John Cage listening to ambient sounds in the environment, or Harry Partch making microtonal instruments out of recycled junk, or Brian Wilson singing his quintessential Southern California lyrics, or Lou Harrison creating an alchemy of Balinese gamelans and ancient Greek tuning modes, or Frank Zappa incorporating Varèsian sonorities and Stravinskian rhythms into his utterly individual music. As all of these pioneers and experimenters showed us, there is much to celebrate and to explore in our own backyard - both figuratively and literally! - and our festival is dedicated to that spirit."
...and selections from Frank Zappa's The Yellow Shark, December 1. Adams also leads the LA Phil in his own The Dharma at Big Sur with soloist Leila Josefowicz, December 5 - 6. Guest conductor and Angeleno Leoard Slatkin leads the orchestra and the Kronos Quartet in the world premiere of a new work by Thomas Newman (of the Hollywood film-scoring Newman family dynasty), December 3 & 4. L.A.-based indie rock quintet The Airborne Toxic Event is accompanied by The Calder Quartet and other special guests for a one-of-a-kind evening, December 4; Legendary California icon Brian Wilson performs in a special stripped-down setting, joined by other artists, including "King of California" Dave Alvin, as they share their West Coast-inspired and sun-soaked sounds in Songs of the Sun, December 6. And, an LA Phil Jazz series concert, A Night of the Beats, features the Charles Lloyd New Quartet, poet performer Michael McClure as well as Kurt Elling, Joe Lovano, Joshua Redman, LA Phil Creative Chair for Jazz Christian McBride, Peter Erskine, Alan Broadbent and others, who come together to relive the hip non-conformity of the Beat Generation's poetry and jazz, December 8.
|
Author
