Friday, January 24, 2014, at 8 PM

Saturday, January 25, 2014, at 8 PM

Sunday, January 26, 2014, at 2 PM

January 25 Media Sponsor: Los Angeles Magazine

WHAT:       Conductor Krzysztof Urbański, who made a powerful impression in his Hollywood Bowl debut in 2012, makes his Walt Disney Concert Hall debut, leading the Los Angeles Philharmonic in three performances Friday and Saturday, January 24 and 25, at 8 pm, as well as Sunday, January 26, at 2 pm. He is joined by pianist Khatia Buniatishvili, in her LA Phil debut, performing Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2. Also on the program is Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5 and the West Coast premiere of Wojciech Kilar’s riotous Krzesany, which will be played Saturday and Sunday. Kilar, a composer-of-choice for film directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, Roman Polanski and Jane Campion, passed away late last year.

The Friday concert is part of the LA Phil’s Casual Fridays series, which features a shorter program, is presented without intermission and encourages audience members to attend in comfortable attire. These Casual Fridays concerts also feature a free 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. 

Krzysztof Urbański is currently in his third season as Music Director of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. He also continues as Chief Conductor of the Trondheim Symfoniorkester, who appointed him Artistic Leader in recognition of the major contribution he has made to the orchestra. This season, he takes the orchestra on tour to Vienna, Cologne, Warsaw and Kraków. He also holds the position of Principal Guest Conductor of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. As a guest conductor, this season sees debuts with the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (at the Ravinia Festival) and the following season with Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich and Münchner Philharmoniker. Urbański will also return to the Philharmonia Orchestra, Wiener Symphoniker, Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de Espana, NDR Sinfonieorchester Hamburg, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. In the U.S., engagements include a return to Washington’s National Symphony Orchestra.

Khatia Buniatishvili’s extraordinary talent was recognized when she was very young. At age 6, she gave her début performance as soloist with an orchestra, and was subsequently invited to give guest performances in Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Austria, Russia, Israel and the U.S. In 2011, Buniatishvili made her recording debut with a Liszt recital on Sony Classical, following now with her first recording accompanied with orchestra for a Chopin album. Highlights of last season include a tour with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra under Paavo Järvi, a tour of Japan and Europe with the Kremerata Baltica, a tour with the Basel Chamber Orchestra under Krystian Järvi and a tour of the U.S., including a series of concerts with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra under Vladimir Jurowski. She also appeared with the Philharmonia under Paavo Järvi, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestra della Scala, Milan, under Gianandrea Noseda, the Orchestre de Paris under Andrey Boreyko, to name only the most important. Recitals will also take her to Singapore, Tokyo, Barcelona, Paris, London and Baden-Baden, among others.

Complete Program:

Wojciech KILAR      Krzesany (West Coast premiere) (except Friday)
CHOPIN                  Piano Concerto No. 2
PROKOFIEV  Symphony No. 5

Upbeat Live pre-concert events takes place in Walt Disney Concert Hall’s BP Hall one hour prior to each concert, and are free to all ticket holders. Award-winning composer and pianist Paul Anthony Romero hosts.

For full artist biographies, please visit: laphil.com

WHO:        LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC
KRZYSZTOF URBAŃSKI, conductor
KHATIA BUNIATISHVILI, piano                

WHEN:      Friday, January 24, 2014, at 8 PM
Saturday, January 25, 2014, at 8 PM
Sunday, January 26, 2014, at 2 PM

WHERE:    WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL
111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles                

HOW TO PURCHASE:   Subscriptions and single tickets for the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s 2013/14 season at Walt Disney Concert Hall are currently available. To purchase, please visit LAPhil.com, the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office or any Ticketmaster outlet. To order by phone with credit card, please call the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office at 323.850.2000, or Ticketmaster at 800.745.3000. For more information, please call 323.850.2000.

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