Music Center - Performing Arts Center Of Los Angeles County

Our Mission

The Music Center's educational mission is two-fold:

To extend the Music Center's commitment to the community by engaging people in the arts - at the Center, and in schools throughout Los Angeles County.

To advance arts education as an integral part of the core curriculum in Los Angeles County schools, from pre-school through high school

About Music Center

The Music Center is one of the three largest performing arts centers in the nation, and one of the world's premier cultural organizations. Located in downtown Los Angeles, the Music Center is home to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Ahmanson Theater, Mark Taper Forum and Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Each year, the Music Center welcomes more than 1.3 million people to performances by its four internationally renowned performing arts companies: Los Angeles Philharmonic under Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen; Center Theatre Group (CTG), under Artistic Director Michael Ritchie; Los Angeles Opera , led by Artistic Director Placido Domingo; and Los Angeles Master Chorale , under Music Director Grant Gershon. The Music Center also offers Dance at the Music Center , a series of internationally acclaimed performances that represent traditional and contemporary techniques and styles from around the world.

The Music Center Education Division nationally recognized for its school programs, teacher training, and development of arts curriculum, provides the finest in arts education to more than 350,000 students and teachers annually through nearly 14,000 programs presented in 20 language

Brief History

The Music Center complex designed by architect Welton Becket opened December 6, 1964 as public/private not-for-profit partnership with the County of Los Angeles which owns the facility. The Center was established largely through the extraordinary efforts of Dorothy Buffum Chandler who raised $20 million in private donations; the Country provided the site and raised the remaining $14 million using mortgage revenue bonds.

The complex completed in 1967, includes the 3,197-seat Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the 750-seat Mark Taper Forum and the Ahmanson Theatre which offers with flexible seating for 1,600 to 2,007, following the 1994 redesign by Ellerbe Becket Architects.