In Sunday’s (3/14) Los Angeles Times, Richard S. Ginell writes, “One evening in 1966, not long after the Los Angeles Philharmonic moved into the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, concertgoers were surprised to find a picket line in front of the hall on opening night. Though picket lines were a dime a dozen in the ‘60s, this one was unusual, for these young music lovers were protesting the shortage of works by Gustav Mahler on the philharmonic’s agenda. The protest received radio coverage, and it had the effect of launching the local Gustav Mahler Society. Can you imagine such a scene today? The composer … is as indelible a presence in the classical music universe as Beethoven or Brahms in 2010, the year of Mahler’s 150th birthday, and leading into 2011, the 100th anniversary of his death. It is hard to think of another great composer who blasted his way from near-oblivion into the basic repertoire with such force in the last third of the 20th century. … Defying the fading classical CD market, Mahler symphony cycles keep pouring out; more than 20 are available with more coming soon.”
Posted March 15, 2010
