At 27 years old, judge him not for his age, but for his work. Gustavo Dudamel will change music history in 2009 when he becomes the youngest music director in the history of the LA Phil. If you had the chance to see 60 Minutes this past Sunday you probably were just as excited and amazed as I was to see such passion from a young man.
According to 60 Minutes: “Aside from the hair, the first thing you might notice about Gustavo Dudamel is the joy, the exuberance, the passion, the energy, with which he conducts. The hair bounces, the arms fly. He is a man possessed, conducting Beethoven, but doing a ballet. Watching Dudamel conduct is mesmerizing, and audiences around the world can’t get enough of him. But don’t think of him as a talented newcomer. Despite his youth, Gustavo sees himself as a weathered veteran.”
Gustavo will lead the LA Phil to new heights when he comes to Southern California next year. One of his top priorities is to introduce the LA Phil to younger audiences and then bring the music directly to young people throughout Southern California. This concept is nothing new to Gustavo.
According to 60 Minutes: “He was in a music program (as a child in Venezuela), which is a Venezuelan innovation. It is called El Sistema, the system, and it takes children – a quarter of a million children – almost all from poor neighborhoods, and teaches them how to play instruments. This has led to hundreds of youth orchestras sprouting up all over the country.”
Click here to watch the 60 Minutes interview.