Ravinia 2024 Issue 4

Youth Movement GustavoDudamel forwards a vision of community in symphony BYKYLEMACMILLAN Closely connected to El Sistema and music education in Venezuela since beginning his own studies in 1986, Gustavo Dudamel carries forward the training he received during a 2015 rehearsal of the fourth generation of the National Children’s Symphony of Venezuela. IN 1943, the New York Philharmon- ic’s little-known assistant conductor, Leonard Bernstein, catapulted into the national spotlight, when he was featured on the front page of the New York Times after brilliantly filling in at the last min- ute for guest conductor Bruno Walter. He went on to be heralded as one of the greatest conductors ever, as well as mak- ing important contributions roles as a composer, educator, and humanitarian. Something similar happened with Venezuelan-born Gustavo Dudamel. In 2005, the newcomer made his US debut at the Hollywood Bowl with the Los An- geles Philharmonic and became an al- most instant sensation. Two years later, the orchestra took a big chance on him, appointing the still-budding 26-year-old as its Music Director, a position he be- gan two years later. “We instantly knew,” wrote Los Angeles Times music critic Mark Swed in early July, recalling that electrifying debut appearance. Dudamel, 43, has gone on to become a conducting superstar with crossover into movies and pop music and has led the Los Angeles Philharmonic—already respected under previous music director Esa Pekka-Salonen—to greater heights. “The ascendancy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic is the salient event in American orchestral life of the past 25 years,” wrote Alex Ross, the influential music critic for the New Yorker , in 2017. In February 2023, in what was seen a huge coup for the orchestra, the New York Philharmonic appointed him as its next music director, a position that—notably—Bernstein held from 1958 through 1969. He begins his duties in 2026. “What I see is an amazing orchestra in New York and a lot of potential for developing something important,” he told the New York Times at the time. “It’s like opening a new door and building a new house. It’s a beautiful time.” In his addition to his skills as podium leader, Dudamel might be best known as an educator, and it is in both those capacities that he will be seen August 6 when he brings the National Children’s Symphony of Venezuela to the Ravinia Festival. Typical of the maestro’s diverse programming with his constant empha- sis on the now, the program will consist of John Adams’s Short Ride in a Fast Machine along with Antonio Est é vez’s Mediod í a en el Llano , Alberto Ginas- tera’s suite of four orchestral dances from Estancia , and Dmitri Shostakov- ich’s Fifth Symphony. RAVINIAMAGAZINE • AUGUST 5 – AUGUST 18, 2024 22 NOHELYOLIVEROS