July 11, 1922: On a warm summer evening, the Los Angeles Philharmonic inaugurated its first season of music under the stars at the Hollywood Bowl. The hope was to popularize the music, a Times review said."An orchestra of eighty-odd pieces, under the inspiring baton of Alfred Hertz, was the means of attaining the desired objective, and the resultant 'harmony of sweet sound' pervading the still California evening air brought an elusively poetic spell to nearly 5,000 listeners who gathered in the midst of the shadowed hills," the review said.
The piece went on to say that listeners would have to adjust to the new outdoor experience. "There is a momentary bigness about the outdoors which causes an alien feeling to one accustomed to the auditorium," it said. "Yet the acoustics of the bowl are so splendid, and Mr. Hertz seems to understand so well the demands of the new condition, that one cannot but look forward to continued success for this new and democratic musical project."
The Hollywood Bowl is the largest natural amphitheater in the United States. Seating nearly 18,000 patrons, the venue has had four shells since its beginnings in 1922 with the current shell becoming the venue's fifth.
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