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Gustavo Dudamel, his roots in Venezuela's El Sistema, and the Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles were the subject of a segment tonight on "60 Minutes." Here's the Bob Simon story with links to video extras, with video of an L.A. Philharmonic rehearsal below.
From the story:
At 29, he's by far the youngest maestro of any major orchestra in the world. But age is not the only thing that distinguishes him from the other guys: there is something about Dudamel that is primal, something that makes people describe him as a "conducting animal."He coaxes his musicians. He inspires them. And he amuses them.
He was rehearsing Gustav Mahler's turbulent 1st Symphony for the most anticipated conducting debut in decades - his own!
"If you ask me if I'm nervous, I'm not nervous, never," Dudamel told Simon.