I have always had the greatest respect for Esa-Pekka Salonen. His artistry as conductor and composer spans from conventional concerts to radical experiments and he has a fine tuned artistic radar that leads him right in what he does. Moreover, he is an intellectual humanist in a way that is not too common in classical music culture.
All music has substantially the same basis regardless of genre. Music is the result of human choices and considerations, and we humans are after all quite similar. During the sonic surface layer there is more that unites than divides, he says.
Tonight and tomorrow Salonen conducts the Orchestre de Paris in music by Ravel at a concert in the new grand concert hall in Paris, the Philharmonie 1. Here is a clip from the rehearsal for the upcoming concerts.