You can go to iTunes right now and download the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra's performance of Arvo Pärt's "Tabula Rasa" and Louis Andriessen's "Racconto Dall'Inferno" and "de Staat." It's a live recording from their Minimalist Jukebox series, a real landmark series of performances featuring works by all the major minimalist artists of the past four decades (including Steve Reich, Philip Glass, John Adams, and even The Orb). What's great about this recording is the fact that it came out less than a week after the performance (the concert was on Saturday, March 25, and the recording was on iTunes Wednesday, March 29). This is what the Internet can do for music: instant recordings, immediate feedback, and access to great performances wherever you might live. And trust me when I say that there were a lot of jealous people out there — people who didn't live in Southern California and, hence, couldn't make it to these concerts.
Now, I bring all this up in part to advertise this great concert series and the recording. Really, though I'm just bragging: my wife and I attended this concert. I don't normally attend Philharmonic performances, but "Tabula Rasa" is one of my favorite modern compositions — ethereal, pristine, delicate, and totally overwhelming. I listen to it all the time, and when I heard that the Minimalist Jukebox series would feature this work, I jumped at the chance to go. I found the experience to be very interesting and very rewarding. The Walt Disney Music Hall (despite the name) is an incredible building, beautifully designed (by Gehry) and perfectly conducive to music.
I find most classical music-goers to be pretentious assholes (like the hybrid car people South Park parodied this week and about half of the people I knew in grad school), but I ignored them and focused on the music. I knew the concert was being recorded. They mentioned it in the beginning and there were signs posted all over the place to remind people to shut up and not make noise during the concert, and I was excited by the prospect of being able to hear the concert live and then listen to it at home.
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