ZUBIN IN THE TREES

posted by James Reel

On KUAT-FM, we're celebrating two April 29 occasions: Zubin Mehta's 75th birthday, and Arbor Day.

Mehta was a glamor boy in his Los Angeles Philharmonic Days--and you thought that started with Gustavo Dudamel--and made a few recordings there that caused quite a stir in the years on either side of 1970. When he moved on to the New York Philharmonic, though, his performances were often criticized as shallow and glib, although they were never less than professional. Since he left New York, Mehta has continued to perform and record elsewhere, notably with the Israel Philharmonic. Through the day, we'll be sampling each phase of his career, via the music of Liszt, Ravel, Smetana, Rimsky-Korsakov, Mussorgsky, Richard Strauss, Beethoven, Bruckner, Verdi, Mozart and Stravinsky.

But it's not all Mehta all the time. The rest of the schedule is devoted to music in honor of Arbor Day, including tree-hugging pieces by the likes of Johann Strauss, Dvorak, Sibelius, Wagner, Hovhaness, Byrd, Bax, Shostakovich, Elgar, and many composers of lesser repute.

And in one case, we're getting double duty out of a piece: Zubin Mehta conducting Smetana's From Bohemia's Woods and Fields.

While you're listening, check out this online slideshow of the most famous trees in the world.