Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and
Haydn's The Bear are Featured

THURSDAY AND SATURDAY, OCTOBER 12 AND 14, 2006, AT 8 PM

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2006, AT 2 PM

Viola Concerto is Co-commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association

Esa-Pekka Salonen conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the U.S. premiere of the Viola Concerto by composer Brett Dean, who is also soloist, on October 12 and 14 at 8:00 p.m., and October 15 at 2:00 p.m., at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Brett Dean premiered his Viola Concerto, a piece that follows the traditional concerto style of three movements, in April 2005 as soloist in London with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

The concerts open with Haydn's Symphony No. 82, The Bear. Pictures at an Exhibition, a suite of ten piano pieces composed by Modest Mussorgsky in 1874, was orchestrated by Ravel; this version is performed this week.

Upbeat Live pre-concert events take place one hour prior to each concert in BP Hall at Walt Disney Concert Hall, and are free to all ticket holders. Chris Russell, conductor and music educator is speaker and will be joined by a member of the LA Philharmonic. In addition, on October 14 after the concert, Chris Russell will moderate a Q&A with Esa-Pekka Salonen and Brett Dean on stage.

ESA-PEKKA SALONEN, the tenth conductor to head the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is currently in his 15th season as Music Director. He made his American debut conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic in November 1984, and he has conducted the orchestra every season since. His current tenure is the second-longest in Philharmonic history, and he recently extended his contract through the 2007/08 season. Alongside his activities as a conductor, Salonen has also won acclaim for his work as a composer. Among the many highlights of Salonen's activities with the Philharmonic have been world premieres of works by composers John Adams, Franco Donatoni, William Kraft, Witold Lutoslawski, Magnus Lindberg, Bernard Rands, Rodion Shchedrin, Steven Stucky, Tan Dun, and Augusta Read Thomas, as well as his own works. He has led critically acclaimed festivals of music by Ligeti, Schoenberg, Shostakovich, Stravinsky, and Berlioz, and has served as Music Director of the Ojai Music Festival. He and the Philharmonic have toured extensively since 1992, including extended residencies at the Salzburg Festival and at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. Salonen's latest orchestral work, Wing on Wing, received its world premiere in June 2004 as part of the Philharmonic's Building Music Festival. In March 2003 Salonen signed an exclusive four-year recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon; in February 2005, the label released Wing on Wing, a disc devoted to his recent works. Before signing with DG, Salonen recorded regularly with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for Sony Classical. A Sony disc of Salonen's compositions, including LA Variations, Five Images After Sappho, Giro, Gambit, and Mania, has garnered critical acclaim throughout the U.S. and in Europe. Salonen and the Philharmonic's discography also includes the debut recording of John Adams' Naive and Sentimental Music - a work that the orchestra premiered - for the Nonesuch label. Salonen was born in Helsinki in 1958, and after studies at the Sibelius Academy in Finland and with private teachers Franco Donatoni and Niccolò Castiglioni in Italy, he made his conducting debut with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 1979. He is the recipient of many major awards including the Siena Prize from the Accademia Chigiana in 1993, the first conductor ever to receive the prize; the Royal Philharmonic Society's Opera Award in 1995; and their Conductor Award in 1997. In 1998 he was awarded the rank of Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government; in 2003 he received an honorary doctorate from the Sibelius Academy in Finland.

Australian composer and violist BRETT DEAN studied in Brisbane before moving to Germany in 1984 where he was with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra for 15 years. Brett returned to Australia in 2000 to concentrate on his compositional activities, championed by conductors such as Sir Simon Rattle, Markus Stenz and Daniel Harding. One of the most internationally performed composers of his generation; Dean's work draws from literary, political or visual stimuli, including a number of compositions inspired by paintings of his partner Heather Betts. Brett Dean began composing in 1988, initially working on film, radio and improvisatory projects. He became established as a composer in his own right through works such as Ariel's Music, a clarinet concerto which won an award from the UNESCO International Rostrum of Composers, the piano quintet Voices of Angels (1996) and Twelve Angry Men (1996) for the 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic. In 2001 he won the Paul Lowin Song Cycle Prize for Winter Songs, and in 2002/3 was Artist in Residence with the Melbourne Symphony and Composer in Residence at the Cheltenham Festival. Brett Dean performs throughout the world as soloist, chamber musician and conductor and has given numerous premieres of solo and chamber works by some of the leading composers of our time. He has also conducted ensembles such as the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Scharoun Ensemble Berlin and Birmingham Contemporary Music Group.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, presents the finest in orchestral and chamber music, recitals, new music, jazz, world music and holiday concerts at two of the most remarkable places 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 programs, community concerts and children's programming, ever seeking to provide inspiration and delight to the broadest possible audience.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12 AT 8 PM

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14 AT 8 PM

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15 AT 2 PM

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

LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC

ESA-PEKKA SALONEN, conductor

BRETT DEAN, viola

HAYDN Symphony No. 82, The Bear

DEAN Viola Concerto (U.S. Premiere)

MUSSORGSKY Pictures at an Exhibition

Upbeat Live pre-concert events take place one hour prior to each concert in BP Hall at Walt Disney Concert Hall, and are free to all ticket holders. Chris Russell, conductor and music educator is speaker and will be joined by a member of the LA Philharmonic. In addition, on October 14 after the concert, Chris Russell will moderate a Q&A with Esa-Pekka Salonen and Brett Dean on stage.

Tickets ($15 - $135) are on sale now online at LAPhil.com, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, or via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000. When available, choral bench seats ($15) will be released for sale to selected Philharmonic, Colburn Celebrity Recital, 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 all information, please call 323.850.2000.

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