You’ll find the perfect L.A. day when you soak up the sun and enjoy the sand on one of its many beaches. For the perfect night in L.A., however? For a night under the stars at Hollywood Bowl, you’ll need to travel 20 miles inland. This amphitheater is nestled in one Hollywood’s many canyons and has been the Southern California favorite for performers and fans for over a century.
Gustavo Dudamel is the music and artistic Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He said that “You see Hollywood Bowl, you listen great music there. The sound arrives amazing, Hollywood Sign, you have the sky. You have all of this!”
Dudamel gave a salute George Gershwin’s night at “Sunday Morning” that night.
Dudamel may feel right at home in this area, possibly because he made his U.S. debut here at the tender age 24. He told Luke Burbank that it was overwhelming, especially because of the history. The Hollywood Bowl is often depicted in movies, cartoons, and other media. You feel the history when you get here.”
The Hollywood Bowl has been used as a backdrop for many memorable moments in television and film, including those of Tom & Jerry, “Beaches”, and “The Beverly Hillbillies”, all under the iconic bandshell or at least one. Built in 2004, the current bandshell was completed.
Chad Smith is the CEO of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association and also a bit of an historian for the Hollywood Bowl. He stated that the original idea was to have a new bandshell each season. During the Great Depression, however, this proved too costly. The shell, built in 1929, was so iconic that it remained in place for nearly 75 years.
Here has been the home of many famous performers over the years, including Ella Fitzgerald and Elton John. The Beatles concert featured screams that could be heard for miles on Hollywood Boulevard.
There was a pool of water in front the stage for a while – until 1968 when Jimi Hendrix arrived. Smith said, “And he started playing, and the crowd just started going more insane.” “And at one time people rushed down, leapt over that gray wall and began swimming in the pool. The Hollywood Bowl leaders said that it was probably time to drain the Bowl.
This is a great place to have dinner or a show. But higher up? You mean, way higher? Many of the bowl’s shows offer $1 tickets. These are a nod towards the Hollywood Bowl’s early days and the original vision of its founders. Smith stated, “It was a group consisting of activists, theosophists and politicians, artists and civic-minded people. But really, it was a collection really persuasive women who decided that Hollywood needed a place where great art forms could be presented to the broadest possible audience at low cost with almost no barriers of entry.”
This mission continues to be carried out a century later. The Bowl has survived a war, a pandemic and many financial downs. Ron Goldman, 84 years old, has seen a lot of it. Burbank was told by him that he was a Hollywood High School graduate and that he got a job at the company. My job was to carry a bunch of programs under my arm and then run up and down the stairs selling them.
Goldman attributes his love for music to that job. He said, “It’s difficult not to fall in love the Bowl.” “Once you come here, you can hear great music in a unique atmosphere. It has helped me to appreciate both classical and popular music. That has been a huge influence on my life.”
Gustavo Dudamel believes that it’s not only the music that moves him but also the silence. He said, “Imagine the concentration and the silence of 18,000 people listening to the pianoissimo.”
The sound or lack thereof of 18,000 people listening together in perfect rhythm.
He said that “that” only happens in places like the Hollywood Bowl.
You can stream selected tracks from the Hollywood Bowl 2022 playlist below by clicking the embed (free Spotify registration required)
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Aria Shavelson produced the story. Editor: Emanuele Secci.
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