musicians

Gustavo Dudamel has begun his tale of two cities.

As Dickens prophetically reminds us, ours is hardly the first age of wisdom and of foolishness, the first epoch of belief and of incredulity. Dudamel’s great challenge is to make his 17th and final season as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic — and his prelude season before taking over the New York Philharmonic (in September he officially became designate music and artistic director) — the best of musical times for both cities.

The opening concerts for the two orchestras were two weeks apart, the Big Apple having come first. The main works on the New York-centric program were by two great 20th century composers, Bartók and Charles Ives, who were treated as outsiders by the city’s musical establishments during their lifetimes.

The performances were impressive. An orchestra that has a reputation for being difficult was responsive. If I read the room right, there was a genuine, if somewhat guarded, sense of optimism from a welcoming crowd.

Following a tradition he started with his first season in L.A., Dudamel opened with a newly commissioned work, Leilehua Lanzilotti’s “of light and stone.” He struck instant sonic gold with this mystical evocation of Hawaii, wondrous in sound, Lanzilotti, a hopeful good start.

Dudamel has a different look these days when he walks out on stage for an L.A. Phil concert after he’s been away for a while. Thursday night at Walt Disney Concert Hall, he again seemed ever so slightly hesitant, as if not knowing what to expect now that his leaving has become manifest. But greeted by a full house’s demonstratively embracing thankful enthusiasm, he beamed, the hesitant posture turning into ownership.

The new work this year is Ellen Reid’s “Earth Between Oceans,” and it is Dudamel’s first effort at bringing together what he calls his two families.

Reid, who is herself bicoastal between L.A. and New York, narrates, through astonishing orchestral properties and powers, an environmental tale of her two cities. The work is a joint commission with the New York Philharmonic; Dudamel will take it east in the spring.

Earth, air, water and fire are Reid’s subject matters, which she translates into four movements that cover a New York winter, an aerial approach to Manhattan’s noise and quiet, the Altadena and Pacific Palisades conflagrations, ending on a sort of surfboard ride over crashing blue waves. With the help of a wordless Los Angeles Master Chorale, Reid tells the story through ever-surprising instrumental evocation.

Nothing, however, sounds like you might expect in Reid’s massive orchestral soundscape capable of holding a listener in tight grip for 30 minutes. Is that percussive pounding in earth the ground moving under our feet and the cello solo snowy Central Park? I don’t know how she does it, but I immediately bought into weird sounds from the chorus indicating something words can’t express about what those New York skyscrapers are up to. The effect of what sounded like ticking clocks going astray felt like an inviting dip in the lake.

Dudamel ended the concert with Richard Strauss’ “Alpine Symphony,” 125 orchestral musicians schlepping up the mountain, finding spiritual ecstasy at the summit and getting drenched on the way down, a self-satisfied drinking in of nature with every step. It is an astonishing, so to speak, over-the-top score, which you either love or abhor for its instrumental vulgarity.

Love was in order Thursday. Dudamel first performed “Alpine Symphony” at Disney in 2008, a year before beginning as music director. He jogged up the mountain and back, full of beans, showing off but also sharing his enthusiasm and demonstrating a skill that gave confidence that this 20-something conductor had the chops.

Last summer, I heard Dudamel conduct the “Alpine” with the Vienna Philharmonic at the Salzburg Festival. The playing was sumptuous but formal and distant. These were the Alps as seen from a comfortable gondola taking in the view, and what a view, indeed.

The L.A. Phil sound, on the other hand, reveled in being-there, huffing-and-puffing immediacy. A rainstorm was a rainstorm: wet. The pastures replete with cowbells weren’t so much scenic as earthy, the real thing.

The orchestra sounded rapt and ready for ecstasy Thursday. There are two new first-chair players. A member of the orchestra’s second violin section, Melody Ye Yuan, has become her section’s principal. Ryan Roberts is the new principal oboe, and he had a luminous solo in the “Alpine.”

It was only after Roberts, who grew up in Santa Monica, won the L.A. Phil blind audition for principal oboe that Dudamel discovered he had just hired away a rising star in what is about to become his New York Philharmonic. But it’s all in the big new family.

1 of 3 | The remains of Colombian musicians Bayron Sanchez, known as B-King, and DJ Jorge Luis Herrera Lemos, known as Regio Clown were found Tuesday, days after Colombian President Gustavo Petro pleaded for their return. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

Sept. 23 (UPI) — Mexican authorities said Tuesday they had found the bodies of a pair of Colombian musicans days after the country’s president pleaded for their return, blaming drug cartels and the United States for their disappearance.

Prosecutors in Mexico City announced they had found the remains of Bayron Sanchez, known as B-King, and DJ Jorge Luis Herrera Lemos, known as Regio Clown, after they had been missing for a week, reported El Pais.

Officials have not offered any explanation for the deaths of the musicians who had just played one of their first international concerts. But Colombia President Gustavo Petro suggested in a post to X Sunday that “multinational mafias” had a role in their disappearance.

Petro also wrote that the mafias are growing in South America because of the “rampant drug consumption in the US,” which he called a “decadent society” lacking in love.

The Trump administration has had a fraught relationship with Colombia under the leadership of Petro, a former Marxist guerilla turned left-wing politician. President Donald Trump has accused Petro of not fulfilling his country’s counter-narcotic obligations. Trump administration officials also raised concerns about the assasination of conservative Colombian politician Miguel Uribe Turbay.

“It is a source of second-hand embarrassment to see a Head of State behaving in this rude manner, blaming the United States for the disappearance of two of his citizens in Mexico,” U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote in a response to Petro on X.

In his post, Petro appealed to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum for help and stated that the musicians disappeared after a performance in the Mexican state of Sonora. However, the artists were last see at a gym in Mexico City’s upscale Polanco neighborhood, reported Parriva.

Sheinbaum, for her part, said Monay that the Mexican Foreign Ministry had been in touch with Colombia and that investigations into the musicians’ deaths were underway, the news outlet reported.

Aug. 24 (UPI) — Classical musicians and instrument makers are warning of a looming crisis ahead of a U.S. meeting in September on Brazil’s push to ban most international trade in Paubrasilia echinata, also known as Pernambuco, the tropical hardwood used in professional violin bows that has been endangered for decades due to centuries of overharvesting.

Brazil in June formally asked the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES, to transfer Pernambuco from Appendix II to Appendix I, the treaty’s highest level of protection, records show. Delegates will decide at the Nov. 24-Dec. 5 conference in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced in the Federal Register that it would hold a public meeting on Sept. 10 to develop U.S. positions on CoP20 agenda items, including species proposals such as Brazil’s pernambuco uplisting. Written comments are due Sept. 17.

Steven Cundall, who runs the Texas-based Luthier Shop, was one of dozens of people and organizations who submitted public comments over the weekend. The violinmaker said in his comment that he would rather support strengthening protections under Appendix II rather than elevating it to an Appendix I listing.

Cundall said this would allow for expanded conservation efforts and heightened protections while avoiding the significant impact an Appendix I listing could have on the music industry, collectors, musicians, orchestras, and management authorities.

“Most antique bows as well as modern bows cannot be certified proving that they are not illegal according to the pending status change,” Cundall further explained in a Facebook post.

“String instrument musicians, collectors, quartets, orchestras, luthiers, bowmakers or anyone with uncertified Pernambuco bows will not be able to travel with their bows outside of their countries without fear of having their bows confiscated by customs authorities in CITES member nations.”

He suggested that the sale or resale of any Pernambuco bows could be prohibited in the same manner as elephant ivory.

“Bows made of Pernambuco, Brazil’s national tree, are without equal,” Yo-Yo Ma said in a statement published by the International Alliance of Violin and Bow Makers for Endangered Species.

“I urge musicians and the public to join the call for conservation and sustainable use of this precious species-there is work to be done and the world of music can play an important role.”

The fight has been years in the making. Pernambuco was first listed under CITES protection in 2007, which allowed trade but regulated it with export permits to ensure the wood was legally sourced and that trade would not endanger the species.

Since 2007, finished bows already outside Brazil have been essentially exempt, as musicians could travel and trade without paperwork. But Brazil has renewed calls for stricter controls since 2022.

In February 2023, CITES started requiring permits for finished bows exported from Brazil for the first time. Bows already abroad remain exempt from re-export permits. An Appendix I listing would go further.

In their public comment, the pianist for the Boston-based musical group called the Pernambuco Chamber Ensemble said the orchestra raises funds and awareness for conservation efforts and “certainly” supports Appendix II protections.

“But it is not reasonable to require document over 250 years of bows,” they wrote. “And obtaining CITES permits would create unworkable restrictions on travel for musicians.”

A number of Latinx musicians have expressed their solidarity and support for immigrant communities via social media in the wake of immigration raids that have resulted in the arrest of 330 people in Southern California and the Central Coast.

In a lengthy Instagram video posted Saturday, TV personality and two-time Grammy-nominated singer Chiquis held back tears as she addressed the raids and reminded her fans to “treat people like you want to be treated.”

“United we stand, divided we fall apart, you guys,” she said. “If all humans would to get together and be kinder and hold each other’s hands and push people a little bit more in a positive way, uplift people, we would be so powerful.”

Música Mexicana artist Ivan Cornejo shared in an Instagram post Tuesday that his father had been granted amnesty by the Reagan administration during the ‘80s. He punctuated his post by sharing the information for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights and added that he’ll continue to raise funds for CHIRLA throughout his tour.

“Words cannot express the sorrow that I feel for my community,” the “Estas Dañada” singer, a native of Riverside, said. “I see my mom, my dad and myself in many of you. I am speechless at the inhumanity that is affecting our Mexican and Hispanic communities.”

“The people being attacked today are not ‘illegal aliens,’ they are human beings with RIGHTS,” pop star Becky G said Tuesday in an Instagram post that paid tribute to her immigrant grandparents. “We must understand that an attack on them is an attack on OUR DEMOCRACY and an attack on what this country was made to stand for.”

The “Otro Capitulo” singer also shared information about what to do if confronted by immigration agents, and listed several advocacy organizations to support.

Los Aptos, a first-generation música Mexicana act band from Indiana, posted a segment of their interview with YouTube podcaster Pepe Garza describing their origins, and called for “a system that is untouchable no matter what a— is in office.”

In the same post, Los Aptos provided information on what to do if ICE knocks on your door and an infographic with the rights a person has if they are arrested.

Fuerza Regida, one of the most streamed Latin music acts, offered their “love and strength” to the Latinx community in an Instagram post Tuesday.

“We’ve been deeply moved by the events of this past week,” the band wrote in the statement. “These are our people, our fans, the very communities that inspire our music.”

Fher Olvera, the lead singer of legendary rock en español band Maná, posted a video on the group’s official Instagram on Wednesday expressing his support for the immigrant community in L.A., and asked protesters to remain peaceful.

“That’s how you are going to win,” Olvera said in Spanish.

Eight-time platinum artist Junior H also chimed in Wednesday, sharing a photo captioned with “No one is illegal in stolen land.” The “Rockstar” singer also shared a post from his fashion brand, Sad Boyz Clothing, announcing that a portion of its sales would be donated to “help cover the legal fees for families impacted by ICE Raids.”

“It’s a small gesture, but one we believe matters— because when one of us hurts, we all do,” read the company’s statement.

The normally tight-lipped Texas band Grupo Frontera also chimed in, writing in an Instagram Story on Wednesday that they “send strength and resilience to our migrant community.”

“We stand with you. As immigrants, we understand the pain, uncertainty and fear that many are experiencing,” the group said. “It hurts to see our people go through this and that’s why we want to speak out. We support you and we will never stop fighting for our community.”

Relatives of five members of the band Fugitivo, aged between 20 and 40, received ransom demands after their abduction.

Drug cartel members are suspected of murdering five Mexican band members, who went missing after being hired to perform a concert in a crime-ridden city in the northeast of the country.

The Diario de Mexico newspaper said on Thursday that the bodies of the five musicians had been discovered after they went missing on Sunday, and nine suspects were arrested in connection with their abduction and killing.

According to authorities, the nine suspects are part of the “Los Metros” faction of the Gulf Cartel, which operates in the city of Reynosa, in Tamaulipas state, near the United States border.

“Law enforcement arrested nine individuals considered likely responsible for the events. They are known to be members of a criminal cell of the Gulf Cartel,” Tamaulipas Attorney General Irving Barrios told a news conference.

Tamaulipas is considered one of Mexico’s most dangerous states due to the presence of cartel members involved in drug and migrant trafficking, as well as other crimes, including extortion.

The announcement of the arrests came hours after officials said five bodies had been found in the search for the men, who were members of a local band called Fugitivo.

The musicians were hired to put on a concert on Sunday but arrived to find that the location of their proposed performance was a vacant lot, according to family members who had held a protest urging the authorities to act.

Relatives had reported receiving ransom demands for the musicians, who were aged between 20 and 40 years old.

Mexican musicians have been targeted previously by cartel members amid rivalry, as some receive payment to compose and perform songs that glorify the exploits of gang leaders.

Investigators used video surveillance footage and mobile phone tracking to establish the musicians’ last movements, Barrios said.

Nine firearms and two vehicles were seized, he said.

More than 480,000 people have been killed in drug-related violence and organised crime, and about 120,000 people have gone missing, in Mexico.