Gustavo Dudamel turned David Geffen Hall into a packed-house coronation on Tuesday night, leading the New York Philharmonic in a high-voltage program that doubled as the orchestra’s spring gala and donor dinner. Evgeny Kissin was back on the Philharmonic stage for the first time in a decade, and after the ovations, musicians and donors sat down together for a postconcert meal. The night, effectively a public sneak preview of Dudamel’s New York era starting this fall, reportedly pulled in roughly $3 million.
A program built for the room
The music was built to dazzle an eager crowd. The orchestra leaned into Russian color with Mussorgsky’s Overture and the “Dance of the Persian Slaves” from Khovanshchina, Scriabin’s Piano Concerto with Kissin at the keyboard, and Stravinsky’s 1919 Firebird Suite closing the night in a blaze. In a press release via New York Philharmonic, the orchestra confirmed the April 28 gala in the Wu Tsai Theater at David Geffen Hall and noted that Dudamel will become the ensemble’s Music & Artistic Director in September.
Donors, dinner and small moments
According to The New York Times, the gala raised about $3 million and drew a donor crowd that mixed old-guard classical royalty with downtown cool, including Itzhak Perlman, eartheater and serpentwithfeet. The Times also caught some of the lighter touches: Jamie Bernstein joked that “he can have as many welcome parties as they can squeeze in,” and Dudamel, offstage, chatted about a favorite Venezuelan spot in Brooklyn and the parmesan chicken he tucked into after the performance.
What it means for opening season
The Associated Press reported that Dudamel will formally take over as music director on Sept. 1, and that his first season will open at Radio City Music Hall before subscription concerts at David Geffen Hall begin in mid-September. That timeline casts the gala as both a financial win and an early hint of the kind of high-profile, crowd-pleasing programming the orchestra plans to roll out under his leadership.
A night of welcome and work ahead
In a press release via New York Philharmonic, the orchestra noted that the evening honored philanthropist Barbara Tober and the memory of Donald Tober, and included a cocktail reception on the Grand Promenade before the concert and dinner. For New York donors and audiences, the gala played as both a warm welcome and a down payment on the ambitious season Dudamel has promised to bring to the city.
