Have you ever been to the Hollywood Bowl?

The Hollywood Bowl has been one of my favorite venues for years!

If you have never been, or don’t live in the L.A. area, the Hollywood Bowl is an outdoor music venue (amphitheater) in Hollywood (I know, surprise!). …

The Bowl officially opened back in 1922 (much much smaller) – you can read more about the history of the venue on Wikipedia.

Attending a concert at the Bowl is ALWAYS an experience …

#1 it’s down in Hollywood. When I was growing up in Southern California, we would attend a concert at the Hollywood Bowl pretty much once every summer …. It was always such an event. Took close to an hour to get there, one the big L.A freeways. The venue is up against a hill with big trees, in an old part of the city …. I love L.A. For reals.

#2 it’s a whole-afternoon experience. The grounds of the Hollywood Bowl is ALL over this hilly area. Even the parking is in levels. This allows the venue to be spread out all over a larger area. It’s a tradition to go to the Hollywood Bowl several hours before the concert with a picnic dinner. The fancy schmancy seats at the venue are box seats with a table for your wine and dessert over music, but the rest of us slum it on benches, picnic areas and even blankets on the cement ground. But it’s so fun!

#3 the L.A. Philharmonic plays there. I love the strings. I have an Associate’s degree in music, so I’ve a little bit of experience in music (the non-pop brand).  I love seeing orchestras even though I am not an expert.

#4 the BEST shows come to the Hollywood Bowl. I’ve seen SO many fun fun shows here. In the last few years, Andrew and I have seen:

• Buena Vista Social Club – old old Cuban musicians. Amazing. This concert quickly became a dance party in the seats!
  
• Belle and Sebastian (backed by the LA Phil) – I can’t tell you how much I loved this concert. Belle and Sebastian is the *perfect* band to be backed by the orchestra. Stuart walked along the catwalk-type wall into the audience … the audience rushed the stage and security had no idea how to handle it. All kinds of fun!
• last weekend, a Beatles tribute concert – 5 different singers of different genres covering Beatles songs. Let it Be and Hey Jude for the finale. love love love.
• I’m going back in a couple weeks to see Harry Connick Jr and his big band (also backed by the LA Phil). Super excited!

Visiting the Hollywood Bowl plants a seed of inspiration to:

• attend more concerts. I love the L.A. Philharmonic.
• re-read the Beatles biography we have – The Beatles: The Biography
• go on more picnics, even if just eating outside on our balcony
• listen to my Ragtime soundtrack (Brian Stokes Mitchell sang at the Beatles tribute last weekend)
• make sure I check the schedule on a regular basis. I would have totally missed the Harry Connick Jr concert if we hadn’t attended last weekend and seen the poster!
• sing more (seeing the tribute concert reminded me it’s OK to do covers. I don’t HAVE to write my own songs to sing)

Have you ever been to the Hollywood Bowl?