MÄLKKI LEADS DVOŘÁK

Susanna Mälkki conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Slavonic Dances 

GRAMMY^®winner esperanza spalding and MacArthur Fellow

Claire Chase join in the U.S. premiere of Felipe Lara’s

LA Phil-commissioned Double Concerto

March 23-25 at Walt Disney Concert Hall

Spanish Translation Here.

LOS ANGELES (March 2, 2023) – The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association presents Mälkki Leads Dvořák with Susanna Mälkki conducting the LA Phil in the joyous polkas and melancholy dumkas of Dvořák’s spirited Slavonic Dances, Thursday to Saturday, March 23-25, at 8 p.m., at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Written while the composer was relatively unknown, Dvořák’s lively transformation of colorful Czech and Bohemian folk dance rhythms launched his career. Famously obsessed with railroads—even saying once he would trade all his symphonies for having invented the locomotive—the Slavonic Dances invites listeners to imagine a train journey through Eastern Europe, taking in the many dance melodies heard at weddings and celebrations.

The program also showcases the U.S. premiere of an LA Phil commission of Felipe Lara’s Double Concerto. After its first rehearsal, five-time GRAMMY^® Award-winning jazz vocalist and bassist esperanza spalding (stylized in all lower case) called it “magic, interdimensional space music.” spalding’s partner in opening portals to new sound worlds is MacArthur Fellow Claire Chase, armed with both a traditional flute and her contrabass version nicknamed “Big Bertha.”

Susanna Mälkki is sought after at the highest level by symphony orchestras and opera houses worldwide. In her final season as Chief Conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, she concludes a seven-year tenure with a distinctive dynamism and imaginative flair to her programming. In addition to a full season in Finland, she leads the Helsinki orchestra on tour to the prestigious Lucerne and Edinburgh festivals, New York’s Carnegie Hall and Washington’s Kennedy Centre this season. Mälkki appears regularly with top orchestras throughout Europe and North America, including the LA Phil, where she was Principal Guest Conductor from 2017 to 2022.

Five-time GRAMMY^® Award-winning visionary esperanza spalding (also known as irma nejando, or, i.e.) is a jazz bassist, singer, songwriter and composer. Captured in a series of duo performances with iconic pianist-composer Fred Hersch, her latest album, Alive at the Village Vanguard, was released in January 2023. With projects like Radio Music Society, Chamber Music Society, Emily’s D+Evolution and 12 Little Spells, she has inventively combined and reimagined inflences from jazz, funk, rock, musical theater and beyond. She has taught at Berklee College of Music and Harvard University, founded the Songwrights Apothecary Lab and wrote the opera …(Iphigenia) in collaboration with Wayne Shorter. She is currently developing a mockumentary with brontë velez and the San Francisco Symphony.

Musician, interdisciplinary artist and educator Claire Chase has given the world premieres of hundreds of new works by a new generation of artists. She co-founded the International Contemporary Ensemble in 2001, was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2012, launched the 24-year commissioning project Density 2036 in 2013, and was awarded the Avery Fisher Prize from Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in 2017. Chase is currently a Professor of the Practice of Music at Harvard University, a Creative Associate at The Juilliard School, and a Collaborative Partner with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the San Francisco Symphony. She is the Debs Creative Chair at Carnegie Hall for the 2022/23 season.

Tickets are available for purchase online at laphil.com or by phone at 323 850 2000. Programs, artists, dates, prices and availability are subject to change.

Concerts in the Thursday 2 subscription series are generously supported by the Otis Booth Foundation.

This performance is generously supported by the Frank Gehry Fund for Creativity.

# # #

About the LA Phil

Under the leadership of Music & Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel, the LA Phil offers live performances, media initiatives and learning programs that inspire and strengthen communities in Los Angeles and beyond. The Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra is the foundation of the LA Phil’s offerings, which also include a multi-genre, multidisciplinary presenting program and such youth development programs as YOLA (Youth Orchestra Los Angeles). Performances are offered on three historic stages—Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Hollywood Bowl and The Ford—as well as through a variety of media platforms. In all its endeavors, the LA Phil seeks to enrich the lives of individuals and communities through musical, artistic and learning experiences that resonate in our world today.