There are always good reasons to head over to the Ojai Music Festival (OMF) come early June, for avowed fans of contemporary and modern music \u2014 modern as in, say, from Stravinsky\u2019s 1913 Rite of Spring<\/em> forward. More general-purpose, musically curious types are also welcome, especially on more populist programs such as the Rhiannon Giddens\u2013directed 2023 fest.<\/p>\n But this year\u2019s model, running from June 11 to 14, exerts an extra double-barreled magnetism. This year marks the festival\u2019s milestone 80th birthday, along with the eagerly awaited return of the promethean Finn-in-America composer-conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen as music director, a deserved point of focus.\u00a0<\/p>\n Salonen seems to be a tailor-made Ojai hero, whose fierce commitment to musical adventurism and integrity led him to quit his San Francisco Symphony post last year, when the orchestra reportedly reneged on its commitment to support contemporary and new music. Twenty-plus years ago, Salonen threatened to leave his post with the L.A. Philharmonic \u2014 the orchestra he helped earn its stripes as one of the world\u2019s greatest during his 18-year tenure there \u2014 if the daring Frank Gehry\u2013designed Walt Disney Concert Hall wasn\u2019t finally completed.<\/p>\n Both of his past OMF years \u2014 in 1999 and 2001 \u2014 have counted among the most sparkling programs in the festival\u2019s recent history. \u201cThe tradition of the Ojai Music Festival is that there is no tradition other than that people can do things that they wouldn\u2019t be able to do elsewhere. Ojai invites us to dream, and it\u2019s a place where dreams can become reality,\u201d said Salonen.<\/p>\n Among the realities planned are a healthy swath of his own music, a fascinating and expanding body of work that can sometimes, unfortunately, be overshadowed by his fame as a conductor. This includes the U.S. premiere of a new piece for violin and cello and the first complete performance of his \u201cSix Preludes for piano\u201d (featuring Music Academy of the West faculty pianist Conor Hanick). Other Salonen fodder here: \u201cArabesques for Olly,\u201d \u201cHomunculus,\u201d \u201cLachen velernt,<\/em>\u201d and \u201cFog,\u201d and Salonen as conductor on three evening concerts, with the acclaimed L.A. Phil New Music Group.<\/p>\n But the program covers an expansive repertoire, much of it touching on composers who have had a role in the Ojai ethos over its eight decades, including Stravinsky, Messiaen, Luciano Berio, George Crumb, Morton Feldman, Gy\u00f6rgy Ligeti, Schoenberg, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Iannis Xenakis, and Salonen\u2019s Finnish comrade Magnus Lindberg. From the younger, living crop of composers, the list also features artists whose music has directly touched 805 audiences: David Lang, Jessie Montgomery, Gabriella Smith, and Anna Thorvaldsd\u00f3ttir, alongside rock-world figures such as Radiohead, Jonny Greenwood, and Bryce Dessner.\u00a0<\/p>\n Musician-wise, the list is a long and starry one, including Salonen collaborator violinist Leila Josefowicz, the Attacca Quartet, and accordionist Hanzhi Wang, who has performed a few times in Santa Barbara in recent years.<\/p>\n I spoke to Salonen before his first OMF year, one with a strong theme focusing on Finnish composers of his generation, including Magnus Lindberg, whose delectably clangorous Kraft<\/em> was a highlight. In their wild youth, studying at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Salonen recalled, \u201cWe were very suspicious of people who wrote symphonies, because they were also the successful ones. My generation felt that success, as such, was very suspicious. If you were successful, you have already compromised something. Obviously, I have had to revise my ideas slightly over the years.\u201d<\/p>\n At the time, Salonen was very much established in the circle of important conductors, in a mainstream sense, but with adventurous tastes. In what could still be a relevant self-reflection, he pointed out that \u201cin my dreams, I still see myself as a part of an anti-establishment movement, which is a really na\u00efve thought considering my position in the music world at the moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBut still, I find it much more stimulating to be against something rather than trying to preserve something. Of course, being a conductor, you inevitably end up becoming a preserving force in the world. I don\u2019t mind that, because there\u2019s an awful lot worth preserving.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n While much of the festival action takes place in the outdoor splendor of Libby Bowl, the festival does venture elsewhere in town, including free concerts at the Ojai Meadows Preserve on Saturday morning \u2014 site of a memorable event last year with percussionist-composer Susie Ibarra \u2014 and an early bird \u201cMorning Meditation\u201d on Sunday and at the Chaparral Auditorium.\u00a0<\/p>\n In short, this year\u2019s Ojai harvest, at 80, promises much to sink one\u2019s senses in.\u00a0<\/p>\n For more information about the festival, see ojaifestival.org<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n \t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.independent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Attacca-2026-3.jpg?w=750&resize=750%2C580\")
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