What began as a dream of two black stretch limousines transforming into the world’s longest Steinway pianos, Grand Pianola Music is a pure, pleasurable musical pile-up of, according to its creator John Adams, “dueling pianos, cooing sirens, Valhalla brass, thwacking bass drums, gospel triads, and a Niagara of cascading flat keys." In this video interview, Gustavo Dudamel sits down with LA Phil Creative Chair and renowned composer John Adams to get his personal take on the piece. Then, Gustavo takes us "Behind the Music" to share the story behind his performance of Grand Pianola Music with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

Behind the Music with Gustavo Dudamel

Tell us about Grand Pianola Music. Why did you choose this piece?

I have conducted a lot of John’s music, and this is a period of his that I love. Some of his earliest successes were from this period, including Harmonium, which I conduct a lot.

We were searching for something to perform, and this piece came up. I knew it would be very difficult to do. With John’s music, even if something sounds very simple, very minimalistic, it is actually very complex to put together. But I listened to the piece, even before reading the score, and thought, “Wow, we need to perform this music.”

I remember closing my eyes and listening to this music, and I could feel my heartbeat following the path of the piece exactly. It takes you on a beautiful journey through its rhythm and into the intimacy of your being. I would love for people to have that same experience.

I understand the weather added to the complexity of recording the piece.

It was around 50 degrees, the coldest any of us have ever been performing at the Bowl. It was a huge challenge, and this music is already so difficult when you’re spending 15 minutes on one beat and can barely hear one another.

Despite how challenging the shoot was, I was so impressed when I heard the recording, which is amazing. It shows the desire of each member of the orchestra to play with excellence, with a love of what they do, and to be connected with our audience. That desire has to be strong because sometimes you ask yourself, “Why are we doing this?” But when you challenge yourself, this is what can happen—something beautiful.

A Playlist by John Adams

Composer John Adams has been the LA Phil’s Creative Chair for more than a decade, but the orchestra has been performing his work for much longer. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the LA Phil partnered with radio station KUSC to continue reaching audiences with the At Home series. Musical luminaries, including Gustavo Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and John Adams, joined co-host Brian Lauritzen to share the music that was important to them during the first few months of quarantine. This playlist comprises both Adams’ selections for the KUSC series and pieces by Adams that were commissioned by the LA Phil, including El Niño and The Gospel According to the Other Mary.