Gil Shaham, Yo-Yo Ma & More Set for LA Phil Classical Concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, Begin. Tonight

The Los Angeles Philharmonic welcomes celebrated conductor Leonard Slatkin as he returns to the Hollywood Bowl to lead the orchestra in a week of concerts beginning with two classical season performances, tonight, August 12, and Thursday, August 14, at 8 pm.

Tuesday's program features Slatkin leading the LA Phil and violinist Gil Shaham in an evening of Russian compositions - Rimsky-Korsakov's dazzling and colorful Scheherazade, Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmila Overture and Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2.

Slatkin returns Thursday joined by legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma for a performance of Elgar's masterful Cello Concerto. The evening's program also includes Walton's Crown Imperial, two short works by Debussy in orchestrations by Ravel (Sarabande and Danse), and Debussy's La mer.

Slatkin concludes the week by leading the LA Phil in the annual Tchaikovsky Spectacular with Fireworks on Friday, August 15 and Saturday, August 16.

Internationally acclaimed American conductor Leonard Slatkin began his appointment as Music Director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in September of 2008. August of 2011 marked the start of his tenure as Music Director of the Orchestre National de Lyon, France. In addition, Slatkin continues to serve as Principal Guest Conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, a post that began in the fall of 2008. Following a 17-year tenure as Music Director of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, Slatkin became Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. in 1996. Other positions in the United States have included Principal Guest Conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra, where he founded their "Sommerfest;" first Music Director of the Cleveland Orchestra's summer series at the Blossom Music Festival, a post he held for nine years; Principal Guest Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl for three seasons; and additional positions with the New Orleans Philharmonic and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra.

Combining flawless technique with inimitable warmth and generosity of spirit, Gil Shaham is sought after as a concerto, recital, and ensemble artist by the world's leading orchestras, venues, and festivals. Last season saw the release of 1930s Violin Concertos (Vol. 1), the first double album to be yielded by Shaham's long-term programming project, which was recorded live with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, BBC Symphony, Staatskapelle Dresden, and Sejong. In live performance, he played 1930s concertos by Bartók, Prokofiev, Barber, Berg, and Britten with such eminent ensembles as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Berlin Radio Symphony, Bavarian Radio Symphony, and Carnegie Hall's National Youth Orchestra of the USA, which he joined as guest soloist on its inaugural national tour. Among his other orchestral collaborations, Shaham reprised Korngold's concerto, of which he has long been recognized as one of the foremost exponents, with the Vienna Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall and with orchestras including the National Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and France's Orchestre de Paris, as well as giving the world, Asian, and European premieres of a new concerto by Bright Sheng. Shaham also gave his signature recitals of unaccompanied Bach in Baltimore, Cleveland, and on tour in Italy.

Shaham has more than two dozen concerto and solo CDs to his name, including bestsellers that have appeared on record charts in the U.S. and abroad, winning him multiple Grammys, a Grand Prix du Disque, Diapason d'Or, and Gramophone Editor's Choice.

The many-faceted career of cellist Yo-Yo Ma is testament to his continual search for new ways to communicate with audiences and to his personal desire for artistic growth and renewal. Ma maintains a balance between his engagements as soloist with orchestras worldwide and his recital and chamber music activities. His discography includes over 90 albums, including more than 17 Grammy winners. Ma serves as the Artistic Director of the Silk Road Project, an organization he founded to promote the study of cultural, artistic and intellectual traditions along the ancient Silk Road trade routes. Since the Project's inception, more than 60 works have been commissioned specifically for the Silk Road Ensemble, which tours annually. Ma also serves as the Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's Institute for Learning, Access and Training. His work focuses on the transformative power music can have in individuals' lives, and on increasing the number and variety of opportunities audiences have to experience music in their communities. In 2011, Ma was recognized as a Kennedy Center Honoree. He serves as a UN Messenger of Peace and as a member of the President's Committee on the Arts & the Humanities. He has performed for eight American presidents, most recently at the invitation of President Obama on the occasion of the 56th Inaugural Ceremony.