But then you see that it’s about something really important - something that has been missing. "I think the future for Gustavo is completely without limits. "We are now going for our third orchestra, and it’s amazing how the children have changed - personally, socially, and also artistically. A product of that system, Gustavo Dudamel has become a byword for joyous, passionate music making, his concerts celebrated almost as religious events. "In my country, the audience is full of divisions. "For Gustavo, the social application of music is a logical extension of orchestral music everywhere. It’s like having Beethoven next to you - except that John Adams can hear! Please make sure you entered a valid address.Gustavo Dudamel conducts Bernstein and Shostakovich The hair bounces, the arms fly. A lot of the children in the orchestras come from the streets. But it’s the way he does that. Like all youngsters who join "El Sistema", Gustavo Dudamel learned social responsibility alongside musicianship. It just happens. That’s beauty. "At the same time, he feels it equally important to include the work of living composers on his programs. Children learn conducting in the same way that they learn instrumental skills–deep end first. That long-term sense is important, because it’s related. When I was twelve, I had a conductor friend who was eight. In the Venezuelan city of Barquisimeto, where crime and drugs threatened many of his young peers, Gustavo credits the extraordinary music education that he enjoyed with his remarkable success.As a young child, Gustavo Dudamel yearned for the day when his arms would be long enough to enable him to play the trombone, like his father. We cannot stand back and do nothing. "To be close to the composer’s mind is a rare privilege," Gustavo observes.
The performances marked not only the 100th anniversary of Bernstein’s birth, but also the 10th anniversary of the collaboration between the Venezuelan conductor and the Philharmoniker. "Gustavo’s strengths, says Gupta, will always adapt to the piece at hand. Gustavo has always worked hard, and he is one of the best-prepared conductors I’ve ever sung with." And when he’s together with them, they’re like family, and it does him good, I believe. There is a commitment to always get better. It’s a fantastic explosion, and I hope to live to be old enough to see a lot more of that.
"He has intuitive musicianship, he’s unbelievably enthusiastic, he’s incredibly hard-working, and extraordinarily conscientious," he says. He brings patience, humour, and good grace; and he’s hilarious. Linda Holt reviews. "Pianist Emanuel Ax, who performed the world premiere of Andrew Norman’s "Release" with Gustavo in May of 2014, sees in him not only a passionate advocate of new music, but also an ambassador for the future. His heart is out there. Son of a trombonist and a singing teacher, Gustavo was playing with symphonies when others were still busy with finger-painting.
"I think it is one of the downsides to being considered to be a Wunderkind. But when you are playing music, you are completely outside of the constraints time. "When you start work on a piece, you have the inspiration of the music. "It’s amazing to see the places where El Sistema is happening right now," Gustavo says. "It’s amazing, and it’s a privilege," he says. "He was miraculous. In a candid interview, 'The Dude' tells Nick about his future musical plans, how his family impacts on his career and of the remarkable Venezuelan youth project, El Sistema, which launched his career. Photo courtesy of the composer As a true Venezuelan, Gustavo Dudamel knows how to live in the moment. And through music, how many lives in Venezuela and now around the whole world have been changed?With the affirmation of the intensely positive relationship with music that he himself enjoyed as a child, and the example of the countless lives he has seen influenced since then, Gustavo is convinced that his music-making is the greatest thing he can do for his son.Thomas Clamor, former member of the Berlin Philharmonic, has known Gustavo since he was a teenager. "Christoph Koncz, principal second violin of the Vienna Philharmonic and himself a conductor, is equally fascinated by Gustavo’s feats of memory. It’s a complete mystery to me how anybody can do that. The ability to make things fun while at the same time taking them incredibly seriously is a talent that Gustavo has more than anybody else I’ve ever seen. ""I do it for Martín. I just thought, ‘I can do this.’ And it was funny, because my friends were there, playing. Unlike most national youth orchestras, which re-audition each year and keep membership below a cut-off age, the Simón Bolívar retained its membership, and grew with its players.In 2000, he led the orchestra on its first German tour. How beautiful, how crazy! "Music shaped the joys and dreams of Gustavo Dudamel’s childhood. "Dudamel grew with the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela. "Many people who wouldn’t normally listen to classical music enjoy listening when Gustavo is conducting, because then the core of the music comes out, and we understand.