Something familiar, something peculiar, something for everyone: “Casual Friday” with the LA Phil

On paper, Friday night’s Los Angeles Philharmonic concert seemed straightforward enough:  a program filled with loads of well-known hum-along tunes, a beloved old-school conductor (Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos) on the podium, and a popular soloist (Lynn Harrell) joining in on the fun.  In the concert hall, everything was generally as one would expect:  the music sounded beautiful and all the musicians involved could rightly take credit.  The audience gave a de rigueur standing ovation at the end and everyone, including me, walked away with a smile.

Pretty much writes itself, right?  Except that just below the surface was all the stuff really worth mentioning.  Nothing Earth-shattering, mind you.  Just a moment here, an observational tidbit there, and a very telling post-concert comment from Mr. Harrell that helped make the concert more interesting to me than a just a collection of well-played chestnuts.

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