It is from my belief in the worthiness and necessity of the HEAR NOW Festival I accepted the request to fill this honorary position. I give my full support to all the HEAR NOW endeavors.
— Esa-Pekka Salonen
Honorary Artistic Advisor
Hear Now Music Festival
Dear Heidi, As Mark Swed said in his LA Times article of May 17th, “This festival is L.A.’s most dedicated resource for surveying local music. From the most famous composers to the most obscure, from academia and from Hollywood, be they John Williams, an electronic wizard at CalArts or a kid fiddling away with a guitar in the garage.”
For the past fourteen years through partnerships with ensembles such as the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, UCLA Philharmonia, the Lyris Quartet, Brightwork newmusic, People Inside Electronics, and the HEX Vocal Ensemble, Hear Now has presented more than 320 works by 203 composers, including 44 world premieres. We and you, our audience and supporters, have made Los Angeles a place where our city’s creative voices are heard, celebrated, and shared with a community that believes in the power of music to connect and inspire.
Now, as we celebrate our 15th Anniversary Season, Hear Now stands at a pivotal moment. Public funding for the arts continues to shrink, even as our city’s composers create work that speaks powerfully to our shared experience. To sustain this vital work, we’ve launched a $115,000 Anniversary Campaign, anchored by a $35,000 matching gift that doubles the impact of your donation. Your gift will directly support performances, commissions, and educational programs that bring new music to life.
With your help, Hear Now can continue giving Los Angeles composers the platform they deserve and audiences the opportunity to experience the thrill of discovery. As we celebrate our 15th Anniversary Season, we invite you to be part of this milestone year —one that looks ahead to the future of new music.
Your gift today not only sustains this vital work but also connects you more deeply to it, with meaningful recognition and engagement opportunities, celebrating the music you help bring to life. Together, we can ensure that the sounds of Los Angeles continue to resonate — boldly and beautifully — for years to come. As our Honorary Artistic Advisor, Esa-Pekka Salonen, reminds us: “We need HEAR NOW, and its very success is so impressive!”
