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Musical Magic Under The Stars
In
July 11, 1922, with the audience seated on simple wooden benches placed
on the natural hillsides of Bolton Canyon, conductor Alfred Hertz and
the Los Angeles Philharmonic
inaugurated the first season of music under the stars at the Hollywood
Bowl. While much has changed in the ensuing years, the tradition of
presenting the world's greatest musicians and striving for musical
excellence has remained a constant goal of this famed Los Angeles
cultural landmark.
One
of the largest natural amphitheaters in the world, with a current
seating capacity of just under 18,000, the Hollywood Bowl has been the
summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since its official opening
in 1922, and, in 1991 gave its name to a resident ensemble that has
filled a special niche in the musical life of Southern California, the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra.
In spite of wars, depression on a national scale, financial stress, and
internal dissension, the Bowl's summer music festivals have gone on,
becoming as much a part of a Southern California summer as beaches and
barbecues, the Dodgers and Disneyland. Thanks to the area's magnificent
climate, only a handful of concerts during the Bowl's history have had
to be postponed due to rain. The Bowl grounds themselves -- one of Los
Angeles County's most renowned parks -- are open year-round for
visitors to enjoy free of charge.
For the latest information about acoustics and architecture, read the Bowl Shell Project page.
Legendary Performers
Of
course, it is the incomparable performances that have truly made the
Hollywood Bowl's history unique. Legendary artists have appeared at the
Bowl throughout the years: Sinatra ... Pavarotti ... Streisand ...
Stravinsky ... Heifetz. So have F.D.R., The Beatles, Mickey Rooney, and
Edward G. Robinson, as well as such renowned "teams" as Fonteyn and
Nureyev, Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald, Simon and Garfunkel, and
Abbott and Costello. Baryshnikov has danced there, as has Fred Astaire.
Garth Brooks, Nat "King" Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday,
Elton John, Al Jolson, and Judy Garland have headlined star-studded
shows at the Bowl, but the all-time attendance record of 26,410 paid
admissions was set on August 7, 1936, for a performance by the
diminutive French opera star, Lily Pons.
World-Renowned Musicians
As
the site of a classical music festival, the Bowl has provided a
showcase for the world's greatest musicians. Bernstein, Walter,
Monteux, Koussevitzky, Stokowski, Karajan, Klemperer (pictured at right), and Leinsdorf, as well as Mehta, Giulini, Rattle, and Salonen
are just a few of the renowned conductors who have led the Los Angeles
Philharmonic in summertime concerts over the past seven decades. Itzhak Perlman, Gregor Piatigorsky, Artur Rubinstein, Alfred Brendel, Vladimir Horowitz, Jessye Norman, Plácido Domingo, Beverly Sills, Isaac Stern
-- and other distinguished vocal and instrumental soloists too numerous
to mention -- have graced the stage for Philharmonic concerts. But
never during its long and illustrious history has the Bowl's
programming been limited solely to symphonic events; fully staged
operas were a regular part of the season in the early years, and the
famed Bolshoi Ballet appeared during the 1950s.
Not Just a Place for Music
Activities at the Bowl are not even necessarily of
a musical nature. It is the scene of commencement exercises for
Hollywood High School and other educational institutions. To the
thousands of pre-concert picnickers who enjoy balmy summer evenings
there it has become the place to dine. For innumerable film and
TV producers, the 120-acre grounds have provided the perfect setting
for dancing, romancing ... and even an occasional mystery! And on at
least one recorded occasion the Hollywood Bowl was a romantic wedding
chapel. On August 9, 1928, composer/conductor/pianist Percy Grainger
and Ella Viola Strom were married on stage immediately after he
conducted the world premiere of his tone poem To A Nordic Princess, dedicated to his bride.
A
"hit" from its very first season (1922), the Hollywood Bowl has
remained popular and accessible to a wide cross-section of Southern
California's diverse population. Individual concert tickets were priced
at under 50 cents during those early years, and to this day $1 buys a
seat at the top of the Bowl for many of the Los Angeles Philharmonic's
concerts during the Summer Festival season. In addition to subscription
concerts of classical and popular music performed by the Bowl's
resident orchestras, the summer schedule includes an ever-growing
variety of musical presentations, including jazz programs, recitals,
and performances by visiting ensembles, Fireworks Spectaculars, and
big-screen movies-plus-music. During the day, the Bowl's youngest
patrons enjoy SummerSounds, the Southland's most popular summer arts festival for children, in operation for more than 30 years.
Getting Bigger and Better
Attendance
figures over the past several decades have soared; in 1980 the Bowl
first topped the half-million mark. Close to one million admissions
were recorded for events at Summer Festival 97. This number also
includes those who attended a variety of events that are independently
produced, such as the annual Playboy Jazz Festival, the Mariachi USA
Festival, and pop and country concerts.
In the future, the Hollywood Bowl will continue to expand the scope of
its concert activities while also continuing its regimen of facility
maintenance and upgrades that will enhance the concert-going experience
for audiences at the world-famous concert center today and in the
future.
Photos: Otto Rothschild Collection - Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County Archives
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Floyd Calendar
