Mälkki Conducts Bartók – Walt Disney Concert Hall, L.A.

About this event

Former Principal Guest Conductor Susanna Mälkki returns to the Los Angeles Philharmonic to explore the many possibilities of the orchestra. The program is designed to showcase the shifting character and individual talents of the ensemble's musicians. Mälkki, widely praised by Gramophone for her ability to “make conspicuous magic” of Bartók’s music, leads a program that contrasts different compositional approaches to the symphonic ensemble. The performance highlights the orchestra both as a unified entity and as a collection of distinct voices. While Bartók’s work treats the orchestra as a constellation of soloists, contemporary Czech composer Miroslav Srnka’s LA Phil–commissioned piece imagines the symphony as a biological superorganism, where subtle movements and seemingly individual roles reveal a hypnotic collective effect. The concert also spotlights the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s new Principal Oboe, Ryan Roberts, featured as the soloist in Martinů’s concerto.

Cast & creative

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  Oboe

  Ryan Roberts
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  Oboe

  Ryan Roberts
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  Conductor

  Susanna Mälkki
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  Conductor

  Susanna Mälkki
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  Conductor

  Susanna Mälkki
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  Composer

  Miroslav Srnka
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  Composer

  Bohuslav Martinů
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  Composer

  Béla Bartók