In Concert at the Hollywood Bowl – FINAL EPISODE

For those in Los Angeles who have had to go the summer without attending concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, this may have felt like the longest of all possible summers. While concerts won’t happen there anytime soon, the Los Angeles Philharmonic has teamed up with local PBS stations KCET and PBS SoCal to offer a series of weekly concerts that starts tonight and runs through September 23rd. Called In Concert at the Hollywood Bowl, the series launches tonight with Hecho en Mexico (Made in Mexico).

Before we go into details, for those of you who do not live in the area, fret not. These concerts will become available in other cities around the country in 2021.

Each concert will be hosted by Music Director Gustavo Dudamel and will feature performances from concerts that took place in previous seasons at the Bowl. The series includes all the genres of music you would find during a regular season.

Here’s the full line-up (please note that schedules are subject to change):

Hecho en Mexico – August 19th at 9:00 PM PDT on KCET/August 21st at 8:00 PM PDT on PBS SoCal

Dudamel leads the LA Phil with special guests acoustic guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela, singer/songwriter Natalia Lafourcade. Cumbia sonidera group Los Angeles Azures performs with YOLA (Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles) and multi-genre band La Santa Cecilia performs. Dudamel also leads the orchestra in a performance of Arturo Marquez’s El Nereidas de Dimas.

Gustavo and Friends – August 26th at 9:00 PM PDT on KCET/August 28th at 8:00 PM PDT on PBS SoCal

Dudamel’s friends here include ballet dancer Misty Copeland, cellist Pablo Ferrández, soprano Amanda Majeski, mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, tenor Issachach Savage, bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green and the Los Angeles Master Chorale. On the program are excerpts from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Dvorak’s Cello Concerto, Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man and the finale to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.

Jazz at the Hollywood Bowl – September 2nd at 9:00 PM PDT on KCET/September 4th at the 8:00 PM PDT on PBS SoCal

You can’t ask for a better line-up of jazz artists for this concert: singer Dianne Reeves, singer/songwriter Ivan Lins, bassist Christian McBride, pianist Chuco Valdes, singer Cécile McLorin Salvant, saxophonist/composer Kamasi Washington plus the group Mega Nova which features keyboardist/composer Herbie Hancock, singer/guitarist Carlos Santana and saxophonist Wayne Shorter.

Musicals and the Movies – September 9th at 9:00 PM PDT on KCET/September 11th at 8:00 PM PDT on PBS SoCal

It appears you have to have won a Tony Award to make it in this show. Kristin Chenoweth (Wicked, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown) performs with Kevin Stites and the LA Phil. Audra McDonald (you know she has six Tony Awards, right?) performs with Bramwell Tovey and the LA Phil. Brian Stokes Mitchell (Ragtime, Kiss Me Kate) performs with Dudamel and the LA Phil.

Música Sin Fronteras (“Music Without Borders”) – September 16th at 9:00 PM PDT on KCET/September 18th at 8:00 PM PDT on PBS SoCal

Dudamel leads the LA Phil and special guests Columbian singer/songwriter Carlos Vives, the band Café Tacvba from Mexico and the legendary Vin Scully. Also on the bill is Paolo Bortolameolli leading the LA Phil in a performance with Florida’s Siudy Garrido Flamenco Dance Theatre.

*Fireworks! – September 23rd at 9:00 PM PDT on KCET/September 25th at 8:00 PM PDT on PBS SoCal

Every Hollywood Bowl season ends with the Fireworks Finale. So it’s appropriate that the last concert in this series is the Fireworks! episode. Performers here include Pink Martini, Nile Rodgers & CHIC, gypsy singer Diego El Cigala, conductor Thomas Wilkins and Dudamel leading the LA Phil in selections from Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite.

Lest you think the LA Phil forgot about its most popular series of concerts each summer, composer/conductor John Williams leads the orchestra in a performance of music from Star Wars. Get out your lightsabers.

Photo of the Hollywood Bowl by Adam Latham/Courtesy of KCET