The Militant wanted to be two places at once on Saturday night - at The Stadium, watching the Dodgers clinch the 2009 NL West Title, and at the Hollywood Bowl, watching the debut of new Los Angeles Philharmonic conductor Gustavo Dudamel (heretofore referred to on the MA's blog as "The Dude").The Militant, Dodger Fan he is, opted for the latter, because the ticket was free, thanks to one of his operatives. Actually all the tickets were free, thanks to a generous sponsorship by Target Stores (which the Militant may or may not be a fan of...) And besides, the Militant already has tickets to next week's NLDS playoff games!
The Militant took transit to the Bowl, of course, riding on the (M) Red Line to the Hollywood/Highland station and taking the Bowl Shuttle (free with his (M) Rail ticket!) from the west end of the complex. Miraculously, he got there in less than 10 minutes (previous Bowl shuttles took nearly 45 minutes due to traffic, no kidding).
After performances by Andrae Crouch, Flea with the Silverlake [sic] Conservatory Ensemble, Herbie Hancock with the LACHSA Jazz Band and a latin/blues set with Taj Mahal, Los Lobos' David Hidalgo and Los Cezontles and Alfredo Rodriguez, it was time to see The Dude.
The Bowl's video screens showed a short video montage (Even The Dude had a montage) of Los Angeles locals in Los Angeles locales wishing The Dude a warm welcome (The highlight was Pink's, which now offers the Dudamel Dog).
His first appearance was not conducting the Phil, but the YOLA Expo Center Youth Orchestra, playing Beethoven's "Ode To Joy." Fitting, since The 28-year old Dude grew up having participated in a similar youth orchestra in his native Venezuela and is a staunch advocate of music education for los niños. A lively contingent of Venezuelans, some of them dressed in the red-yellow-blue tricolor of their country's flag, gushed pride at seeing their very own El Tipo walk onstage.
Later, The Dude walked out in a white tux, conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic, accompanied by the Los Angeles Master Chorale, plus members of various multiethnic choirs around town, to perform Beethoven's entire 9th Symphony. The Bowl's four (non-HD, wassup wit dat?) screens projected not only closer shots of The Dude and the musicians, but the translated "Ode To Joy" lyrics from old German to English y Español for the crowd to understand.
The Dude was energetic and animated, true to all the hype, even conducting with his eyebrows and a single pinky finger. At the conclusion, The Dude made a bilingual speech on how grateful he was with his new gig. The Phil concluded with an encore, and the Bowl's trademark acoustic shell also became a pyrotechnics machine.It's gonna be a long-ass while before you'll hear The Dude announcing his retirement, so you can count on The Dude being an influential cultural figure in this City for decades to come. The Militant welcomes The Dude to Los Angeles!
Missed the show? Watch the streaming webcast!
MORE PICS!
This is your Hollywood Bowl bike parking...
Bowl crowd
The Bowl makes a funny face.
The Dude (is it just the Militant, or does he look a bit like this dude?)
