You still pondering who could be the next Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic? Paavo Järvi has entered the chat.

I know, I know, he’s not exactly a stranger. In fact, as an alumnus of the late lamented Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute, Mr. Järvi is practically family. Since then, he’s had tons of experience leading noteworthy orchestras, including as former Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony, current Chief Conductor of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, and in the 2028-29 season, he becomes Chief Conductor of the London Philharmonic.

After being absent between 2006 and 2021, he’s been back fairly regularly . Thiss week represents his 3rd residence at Walt Disney Concert Hall since his 2022 return. And what a visit it was.

Friday night was the first of three performances of works by Schumann, Beethoven, and Brahms. It’s not the kind of program that jumps off the page as noteworthy. And yet, it proved to be a useful demonstration of what musicians and audience would want from someone who’d be the next podium leader: an ability to make warhorses sound fresh, while getting the orchestra to sound great and injecting some joy into the proceedings. Mr. Järvi did those things in spades, most notably in the Brahms 2nd Symphony.

Frequent All is Yar readers know that when it comes to Brahms, I’m partial to the concertos. I consume the symphonies more as duty than desire, with the quintessential performances my mind’s ear immediately conjuring up being Riccardo Muti and the Chicago Symphony. LA audiences heard them do the 4th Symphony a few weeks ago at The Soraya, and the 3rd and 2nd a few years back at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Each of them — even the sunny 2nd symphony — was inside-the-box Brahms at its most exquisitely monumental and noble, never too fast or slow, loud or soft. These renditions align perfectly with Mr. Muti’s repeated admonition that this music is absolutely not entertainment, it is art.

I take him at his word. The Muti/CSO approach is Brahms as museum piece, to be admired — maybe even adored, if that’s your wont. It doesn’t happen to be mine, however. I can respect a Brahms symphony even if sitting through one is usually not my idea of a good time.

In contrast, Mr. Järvi was very willing to explore a wide range of tempos and dynamics while still respecting Brahms’s structure, scale, and sensibility. He managed to get a lush yet transparent sound from the strings, allowing woodwinds to be prominent throughout. Within the woodwinds, he calibrated balances between sections to create a variety of timbres while allowing principals Catherine Ransom Karoly (flute), Ryan Roberts (oboe), Boris Allakhverdyan (clarinet), and Whitney Crockett (bassoon) to shine individually when appropriate. Brass and timpani added color and punch as needed without ever overpowering.

The result was a Brahms symphony that was compelling and — gasp! — entertaining, even fun. Yeah, I said it: “fun.” I never thought I’d put “Brahms” and “fun” in the same sentence, and that alone says something about how successful Mr. Järvi was with his approach.

I wasn’t the only one having a good time. During ovations, the vast majority of LA Phil musicians had big smiles, much more than the professional and polite grins they usually have when receiving applause. Most notably, with the 3rd curtain call, Acting Concertmaster Bing Wang made a concerted effort to keep the orchestra seated to allow the conductor to receive ovations himself; Mr. Järvi quickly pulled her out of her 1st violin chair and the rest of the musicians stood accordingly so they could all take a bow. The last conductor for whom I saw the orchestra make this gesture was the much-loved Herbert Blomstedt.

Schumann’s Overture, Scherzo, and Finale, the evening’s opening work, was entertaining in its own right. The cheery three movement work had somehow never been performed by the LA Phil before. Kudos to Mr. Järvi for digging it up and giving us its premiere. It deserves to be played again.

After the Schumann, Behzod Abduraimov joined for the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1. The Uzbek pianist has made a habit of being one of the LA Phil’s go-to replacements for indisposed soloists. This time, he filled in for the originally announced Beatrice Rana who withdrew “due to unforeseen circumstances.” Glad that he did.

He took an appropriately classical approach, keeping dynamics contained and textures clean. Pedalling was minimal. At the same time, he gave the youthful work energy and charm. The third movement was particularly playful. Mr. Järvi and orchestra matched his approach, offering spirited scaffolding and sensitive support.

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As I mentioned last year, Mr. Järvi is one of the few regular visitors that has experience leading orchestras in the US and Europe with a reasonably broad repertoire. He’s won both Gramophone and Grammy awards. He brings no controversies or political baggage.

Locally, he has had a relationship with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. I doubt he’d be put off with having Esa-Pekka Salonen as Creative Director, nor with the LA Phil’s extant relationships with Zubin Mehta, Gustavo Dudamel, John Adams, or anyone else. And now, there is clear chemistry between him and the orchestra.

If Kim Noltemy, the orchestra’s President & CEO, doesn’t already have him on her short list of Music Director candidates, I’d be quite surprised. That said, I don’t think there’s any rush to name him to the post. Plus there are other candidates who also deserve attention, including some that don’t yet have any appearances announced, even in the upcoming 2026-27 season (*cough* Andris Nelsons *cough* Jakub Hrůša *cough cough*).

Paavo Järvi returns to Walt Disney Concert Hall next season for only two performances of Wand’ring Bark by Helena Tulve, Bartok’s 2nd Violin Concerto (Vilde Frang, soloist), and Schumann’s Symphony No. 3. Judging by the success of this weekend’s concerts, those April 2027 concerts will be most interesting. Put them on your calendar now.

Random other thoughts:

• The crowd was enthusiastic and applauded between every movement. After the first movement of the Schumann, many audience members treated it as the end of the piece, giving a loud ovation and even some cheers. Mr. Järvi partially turned around, smiled, and held up a finger as if to say, “Just a second, there’s more.” The only movement transition that wasn’t interrupted was at the end of the 3rd movement of the Brahms, with conductor and orchestra giving only the slightest of pauses before jumping headlong into the 4th.
• Mr. Abduraimov played a beautiful encore. Unfortunately, I didn’t recognize it. Once I get confirmation from the orchestra what it was, I’ll update here accordingly.

RELATED POSTS

• Comings and going at the LA Phil and beyond (March 2026 edition, pt. 2): the latest guest concertmasters, thoughts on oboist Ryan Roberts, and more (March 19, 2026)
• Comings and going at the LA Phil and beyond (March 2026 edition, pt. 1): a clarinet tug-of-war and a viola shuffle (March 18, 2026)
• Comings and goings at the LA Phil (Summer 2024 edition, pt. 1): which conductors new CEO Kim Noltemy could — and should — consider as Music Director candidates (July 9, 2024)

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Photo credits:

• Paavo Järvi (2025): Elizabeth Asher, courtesy of the Los Angeles Philharmonic
• Behzod Abduraimov: courtesy of the artist’s website