The Concert is Part of Ax’s LA PHIL On Location Residency

THURSDAY AND FRIDAY, MARCH 25 AND 26, 2010, AT 8 PM
SATURDAY, MARCH 27, 2010, AT 2 PM

The March 25 Concert is Generously Supported by Fidelity Investments
The March 27 Concert is Generously Supported by Princess Cruises, the Official Cruise Line of the
Los Angeles Philharmonic
March 25 Media Sponsor: Los Angeles Magazine
March 26 Media Sponsor: Univision/Telefutura

Lionel Bringuier leads the Los Angeles Philharmonic and acclaimed pianist Emanuel Ax in three performances of Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2, Thursday and Friday, March 25 and 26, at 8 p.m., as well as Saturday, March 27, at 2 p.m. All three dates also feature Berlioz’s Le Corsaire Overture and the Thursday and Saturday program includes Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 6.

All three concerts open with Hector Berlioz’ Le Corsaire Overture, a piece he first worked on while in Nice, recovering from a suicide attempt brought on after his fiancée left him for another suitor. Years later, he returned to Nice and re-worked his previous sketches into his Corsaire Overture, which was originally called La Tour de Nice (The Tower of Nice).

The program continues with Ax performing Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2. Chopin wrote his two piano concertos a few months apart in 1829 and 1830, between the ages of 19 and 20 and before he’d completed his formal education. At the time he created these ambitious works, he was very much a vivacious Polish composer, years before morphing into his better-known persona of the fragile, hyper-sensitive French composer of the final years of his short life.

The Thursday and Saturday programs close with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 6, which was to have been a monument to Vladimir Lenin, following the positive reception of the composer’s Fifth Symphony and return to favor. The Sixth Symphony, however, included no reference to Lenin, disappointing Shostakovich’s audience and critics at the time. One Soviet-era commentator, Ivan Martynov, stated, “The idea of the Sixth may be …allegorically explained as the juxtaposition of past and present. The past, belonging to a world of foment and struggle for the liberation of the human spirit…this accounts for the restrained and introspective character [of the first movement]. The present is sheer exhaltation in victory and lends the music its airy, carefree nature.”

Lionel Bringuier continues as LA Phil Associate Conductor and as Chef associé of the Orchestre de Bretagne, and began his tenure as Music Director of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León in Valladolid, Spain in the 2009/10 season.

During his LA Phil 2009/10 On Location residency Emanuel Ax celebrates the bicentennials of Romantic-era composers Robert Schumann and Frédéric Chopin. Ax’s remaining On Location concerts feature him in an LA Phil Chamber Music Society series concert (March 30) and an LA Phil Colburn Celebrity Series recital  presenting a new work by Thomas Adès (April 20).

The Friday, March 26 performance is part of the LA Phil’s 2009/10 Casual Fridays series. The series encourages audiences and orchestra members to attend in comfortable attire. These programs feature free post-concert activities for all ticket-holders to enjoy including a TalkBack discussion with musicians held on stage after the performance and a chance to mingle with members of the orchestra in the Concert Hall Café.

Each concert is preceded by Upbeat Live discussions which are free to ticket-holders, and occur in BP Hall one hour prior to the performances. Veronika Krausas, composer and Professor at Thornton School of Music at USC, hosts.

For full artist biographies, please visit:  http://www.laphil.com.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under the vibrant leadership of Gustavo Dudamel, presents the finest in orchestral and chamber music, recitals, new music, jazz, world music and holiday concerts at two of the most remarkable locations anywhere to experience music – Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to a 30-week winter subscription season at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the LA Phil presents a 12-week summer festival at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and home of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. In fulfilling its commitment to the community, the Association’s involvement with Los Angeles extends to educational concerts, children's programming and community concerts, ever seeking to provide inspiration and delight to the broadest possible audience.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:
THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010, AT 8 PM
FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 2010, AT 8 PM (Casual Fridays)
SATURDAY, MARCH 27, 2010, AT 2 PM
WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL
111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC
LIONEL BRINGUIER, conductor
EMANUEL AX, piano

BERLIOZ  Le Corsaire Overture
CHOPIN  Piano Concerto No. 2
SHOSTAKOVICH     Symphony No. 6 (except Friday)

The March 25 concert is generously supported by Fidelity Investments.
The March 27 concert is generously supported by Princess Cruises, the Official Cruise Line of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
March 25 Media Sponsor: Los Angeles Magazine
March 26 Media Sponsor: Univision/Telefutura

Each concert is preceded by Upbeat Live discussions which are free to ticket-holders, and occur in BP Hall one hour prior to the performances. Veronika Krausas, composer and Professor at Thornton School of Music at USC, hosts.

Tickets ($42 - $160) are on sale now at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, online at LAPhil.com, or via credit card by phone at 323.850.2000. When available, choral bench seats ($17) will be released for sale to selected Philharmonic, Colburn Celebrity Series, and Baroque Variations performances beginning at noon on the Tuesday of the second week prior to the concert. A limited number of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full time students may be available at the Walt Disney Concert Hall box office two hours prior to the performance. Valid identification is required; one ticket per person; cash only. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for special discounts for selected concerts and seating areas. For information, please call 323.850.2000.