HOLLYWOOD HILLS — The Los Angeles Philharmonic announced a number of digital initiatives to bring its music programs “to the broadest possible audience.”
The announcement comes as the Philharmonic canceled its fall 2020 season at Walt Disney Concert Hall through Dec. 31 due to the health crisis.
The Philharmonic’s Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel said he has been recording “socially distanced performances” at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood Hills, and meeting with staff to create projects with “partners.”
“I have been working non-stop since March, here in California, to find new, safe and impactful ways to address how we will adapt to the many challenges we are facing as both an institution and an art form,” Dudamel said. “I believe that the LA Phil is uniquely equipped to address this ever-changing situation.”
New broadcast programs include a six-episode television series hosted by Dudamel, called In Concert at the Hollywood Bowl. It will bring “unprecedented access to the past decade of orchestral, rock, jazz, dance and songs from Broadway musicals and the movies at the Hollywood Bowl.”
The program is produced in partnership with KCET, which will air the series on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. beginning on Aug. 19, and Fridays at 8 p.m. on PBS SoCal beginning Aug. 21.
KCRW radio station, whose 20-year “World Festival” collaboration with the Philharmonic brings concert broadcasts with a wide array of genres throughout the summer, will also bring highlights of past “World Festivals” through an exclusive series of archival concerts to be broadcast this summer.
David C. Bohnett Chair Chief Executive Officer for the Philharmonic, Chad Smith said in the announcement that the Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA) will also be expanded.
“Under Gustavo’s leadership, we are finding creative ways forward during an otherwise uncertain time,” Smith said. “The future of the LA Phil is very much a reflection of the values Dudamel embodies as an artistic leader. These investments will enable us to bring music, learning programs and important conversations to the largest audience possible in Los Angeles and beyond.”
