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  • MUSIC DIRECTOR ESA-PEKKA SALONEN LEADS U.S. PREMIERE OF HIS NEW WORK, "FOREIGN BODIES" AS LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC CLOSES 2001/2002 SEASON
  • Apr. 25, 2002
  • Thursday, May 16 at 8 PM, Friday, May 17 at 1 PM and

    Sunday, May 19 at 2:30 PM at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion

    Los Angeles Philharmonic Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen conducts the United States premiere of his new work, Foreign Bodies, in the Los Angeles Philharmonic's 2001/2002 season finale concerts, taking place on May 16, 17, and 19 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Combining the new with the old, Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2 and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 4 are also featured on the program. Renowned virtuoso Yefim Bronfman returns to the Dorothy Chandler stage as soloist in the piano concerto.

    Upbeat Live pre-concert events take place one hour prior to each concert in the Grand Hall and are free to all ticket holders. Alan Chapman leads the May 16, 17 and 19 Upbeat Live sessions.

    Salonen's Foreign Bodies embodies a synthesis of the thinking and new ideas the composer developed while on a yearlong sabbatical from conducting. The new work includes some material from his recent solo piano piece Mécanisme (first movement of Dichotomie) and a choral work Djupt i rummet ("Deep in space/room"). When writing about Foreign Bodies and his inspiration for the piece, Salonen remarked, "I very much enjoy the energy and joy of my adopted hometown of Los Angeles. And yet, I feel foreign, a misplaced shy northerner amidst extroverted and confident Californians. This polarity is quite inspiring …"

    It is fitting then that Salonen now conducts Foreign Bodies in his "adopted hometown" for its U.S. premiere. Conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Salonen's friend and colleague (the piece is dedicated to Saraste), led the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of the work in August 2001 at the Schleswig-Holstein Festival in Kiel, Germany.

    Sergei Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2 is the second piece on the program. Prokofiev himself was the soloist at the first performance of the innovative concerto which caused a sensation when it premiered near St. Petersburg in August 1913.

    The program closes with Tchaikovsky's triumphant Symphony No. 4. The Fourth Symphony occupies a special place in the Tchaikovsky timeline, as it was composed at a difficult time in the composer's life (1877 - 1878). It was also during this time, however, that Tchaikovsky entered into a 14-year friendship with the woman who became his great inspiration and patroness, Nadezhda von Meck. Symphony No. 4 is dedicated to von Meck. His sentiments at the time - both positive and negative - are reflected in this well-known work.

    ESA-PEKKA SALONEN, the tenth conductor to head the Los Angeles Philharmonic, began his tenure as Music Director in October 1992. Salonen made his American debut conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic in November 1984, and he has conducted the Orchestra every season since. Among the many highlights of Salonen's activities with the Philharmonic have been world premieres of new works by composers John Adams, Bernard Rands, Rodion Shchedrin, Steven Stucky, and Salonen himself, well-received Ligeti and Stravinsky Festivals, appearances at the Ojai Festival, seven critically acclaimed international tours since 1992, and his extensive discography with the Orchestra for Sony Classical. Salonen was born in Helsinki, Finland in 1958. He made his conducting debut with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 1979, and he has been one of the world's most sought-after conductors since his debut in London with the Philharmonia Orchestra in September 1983. He served as principal guest conductor of the Philharmonia from 1985 to 1994 and as principal conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1985 to 1995.

    YEFIM BRONFMAN is widely regarded as one of the most talented virtuoso pianists performing today. His commanding technique and exceptional lyrical gifts have won him consistent critical acclaim and enthusiastic audiences worldwide, whether for his solo recitals, prestigious orchestral engagements, or rapidly growing catalog of recordings. Highlights of Bronfman's 2001/2002 season include appearances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Atlanta Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, and Philadelphia Orchestra, among many others. Born in Tashkent, in the Soviet Union in 1958, Bronfman became an American citizen in 1989.

    EDITORS PLEASE NOTE

    Thursday, May 16 at 8 PM

    Friday, May 17 at 1 PM

    Sunday, May 19 at 2:30 PM


    DOROTHY CHANDLER PAVILION

    LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC

    ESA-PEKKA SALONEN, conductor

    YEFIM BRONFMAN, piano

    Salonen:  Foreign Bodies (U.S. Premiere)

    Prokofiev:  Piano Concerto No. 2

    Tchaikovsky:  Symphony No. 4

    Tickets ($12 - $78) are on sale now at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion box office, all Ticketmaster outlets (Robinsons-May, Tower Records, Ritmo Latino, and selected Wherehouse locations), and by credit card phone order at 213.365.3500. Tickets are also available online at laphil.com. A limited umber of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full-time students may be available two hours prior to the performance at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion box office. Valid identification is required; one ticket per person. Groups of 10 or more may be eligible for special discounts. For further information, please call 323.850.2000.

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  • Contact:

    Elizabeth Hinckley, 323/850-2047; Melanie Gravdal, 323/850-2021