Skip to page content
  • WDCH
  • ZUBIN MEHTA AND PINCHAS ZUKERMAN JOIN LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC DECEMBER 13-16 IN THE DOROTHY CHANDLER PAVILION
  • Dec. 13, 2001
  • Zukerman is soloist in Elgar’s Violin Concerto;

    Mehta conducts Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring

    Former Philharmonic Music Director Zubin Mehta and violinist Pinchas Zukerman, two of classical music’s most celebrated personalities, collaborate with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in a program that juxtaposes Elgar’s romantic Violin Concerto with Stravinsky’s tradition-shattering Rite of Spring, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, December 13, 14 and 15 at 8 p.m., and Sunday, December 16 at 2:30 p.m. in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Upbeat Live, a free pre-concert discussion with Alan Chapman, takes place one hour prior to each performance in the Grand Hall.

    Pinchas Zukerman, who began his multifaceted career as an award-winning violinist/violist, is the soloist in Elgar’s Violin Concerto, one of the most difficult works in the violin repertoire. The esteemed British composer Sir Edward Elgar was at the height of his fame in 1909 when The Philharmonic Society commissioned the Violin Concerto. It was dedicated to the internationally famous violinist Fritz Kreisler, who was soloist in the premiere performance at London’s Queen’s Hall on November 10, 1910, with Elgar conducting.

    Less than three years would pass before possibly the most notorious premiere in modern music history -- the introduction of Stravinsky’s ballet, The Rite of Spring, on May 23, 1913, at the Théatre des Champs-Elysées. After creating two challenging, but ultimately successful, works (The Firebird and Petrushka) for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, Stravinsky unleashed the revolutionary rhythms and music that, according to one London reviewer at the event, “baffles verbal description.” The audience greeted both the music and the dancing (choreographedby Vaslav Nijinski) with boos, catcalls, shouting, torrents of rotten vegetables and even fist-fights. Stravinsky had to escape the irate crowd through a back entrance. Yet a little less than a year later, at the first performance of the Rite as an orchestral concert piece, the same composition elicited rapturous response. Since that time, it has been generally recognized as one of the landmark works and propelled Stravinsky to the forefront of the 20th century’s most influential composers. Eugene Goosens conducted the first Los Angeles Philharmonic performance of The Rite of Spring at Hollywood Bowl on August 31, 1928.

    Tickets ($12-$78) are available at the Philharmonic’s Music Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets (Robinsons-May, Tower Records, Ritmo Latino, Tu Música, and selected Wherehouse locations), and by credit card phone order at 213/365-3500. Tickets are also available on-line at laphil.com. Groups of 10 or more may be eligible for a 20% discount; call 323/850-2050. A limited number of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full time students may be available 2 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.

    ZUBIN MEHTA currently holds the music directorships of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. His long association with the Israel Philharmonic began in 1969, and in 1981 he was given a lifetime appointment with that orchestra. Mehta served as Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic from 1962-1978, during which time he amassed a large discography, took the Philharmonic on tours throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia, and developed a strong connection to the Southern California community. In 1978, he became Music Director of the New York Philharmonic, a post he held for 13 years, longer than any director in that orchestra’s history. Mehta’s distinguished career includes guest conducting appearances at the world’s major opera houses and concert halls. In addition, he has won renown as an international activist, utilizing musical performance as a forum to promote peace and harmony worldwide. His current Los Angeles Philharmonic engagement also includes performances of the Verdi Requiem on December 20, 21 and 22.

    PINCHAS ZUKERMAN is internationally recognized as a consummate musician, equally extolled as a violinist, violist, conductor, pedagogue, chamber musician, and exponent of contemporary music. Born in Tel Aviv in 1948, Zukerman studied there with his father and with Ilona Feher, in whose name he has founded a school in Holon, Israel. He came to America in 1962, with support from Isaac Stern, Pablo Casals and the America-Israel and Helena Rubinstein Foundations. Following studies at New York’s Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian, Zukerman embarked on a career as a solo violinist and violist. His triumph in the 25th Leventritt Competition quickly established the young musician’s reputation as a world-class soloist. He subsequently expanded his artistic endeavors to the podium, again with noteworthy success. Zukerman has served as music director of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony’s Summer MusicFest, London’s South Bank Festival, and the Dallas Summer Music Festival. Since 1998 he has held the music directorship of the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Canada. A prolific recording artist, Zukerman has made more than 100 recordings, has received 21 Grammy nominations and won two awards.

    EDITORS - PLEASE NOTE:

    Thursday, December 13, 8 PM

    Friday, December 14, 8 PM

    Saturday, December 15, 8 PM

    Sunday, December 16, 2:30 PM


    Dorothy Chandler Pavilion

    Los Angeles Philharmonic

    ZUBIN MEHTA, conductor

    PINCHAS ZUKERMAN, violin

    Elgar: Violin Concerto

    Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring

    Upbeat Live, a free pre-concert discussion with Alan Chapman, takes place one hour prior to performances.

    Single tickets ($12-$78) are available at the Philharmonic’s Music Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets (Robinsons-May, Tower Records, Ritmo Latino, Tu Música, and selected Wherehouse locations), and by credit card phone order at 213/365-3500. Tickets are also available on-line at www.laphil.com. A limited number of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full time students may be available 2 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.

    # # #
  • Contact:

    Elizabeth Hinckley, (323) 850-2047; Rachelle Roe, (323) 850-2032