"60 Minutes" was inordinately prideful at the conclusion of its piece on Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel. Reporter Bob Simon was adamant that the next time any viewer heard about Dudamel, they could say they saw him on the CBS Sunday night news program first.
Such is the pride that surrounds this conductor, a "rock star" of the classical field as "60 Minutes" called him. There's a rush to chronicle his rise to prominence over the last dozen years, but the Dudamel story has a distinct life of its own:  This is the rare story in which New York is tipping its hat to Los Angeles.
Mysteriously, the Gotham media is accepting - and glorifying - Dudamel at face value, praising his skill on the podium, his attitude and work ethic, and his suddenly cemented place in the classical music world. The zinger is that New York media is doing it without taking potshots at Los Angeles or how the city might strip him of his talents; the media is not even questioning the wisdom of giving a young conductor his first major orchestral job in the U.S.
Dudamel is 26 years old and conducts Venezuela's Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra, which toured the U.S. in November, six months after being announced the L.A. Philharmonic's music director beginning in September 2009.  He replaces Esa-Pekka Salonen, the Finnish conductor and composer who elevated the status of L.A.'s orchestra through performance and programming, a famous world tour in the mid-90s and a glorious concert hall that opened in 2003. Salonen has become a landmark figure in Los Angeles and the classical world has followed his lead. He has matched the popular and the experimental like no one before him, merging the modern and historical across a broad spectrum of music, including  pop, jazz and world music.
Salonen, who turns 50 this year, had to earn his stripes when he came on board in 1990; Dudamel arrives with media trumpets blaring - he's like the newly signed baseball player expected to hit .300 and, 40 home runs, steal 30 bases and play solid defense.  Salonen didn't have that luxury. He had to watch plans for a new hall come, go and return, much like recording contracts for himself and the L.A. band. Classical music and orchestras were a dying breed while he was setting the course for the L.A. Phil; orchestras in other cities that dumbed down programming while he took the opposite tack and proved not only successful here, his style was mimicked in other cities such as New York.
The portrayal of Dudamel is as the superstar product of Venezuela's "las sistema," the public education program that puts instruments into the hands of children. he is exciting to watch, a passionate and exuberant baton waver (Salonen is no slouch either  on the podium, just a bit more stern looking).   
Youth and looks - he's attractive as is his wife - are definitely Hollywood qualities yet the L.A. Phil has, in recent years, deliberately stayed away from the studio Salonen and the people who program  Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl have had far greater success reaching out to rock acts, particularly indie performers such as Belle & Sebastian, the Decemberists, Sigur Ros and Bright Eyes.
No one really knows about Dudamel's tastes  - Salonen's favorite band has long been Radiohead - and whether he will continue to offer that connection between classical and unlikely rock acts. He is certainly committed to youth orchestras and it's quite possible he enters the L.A. job with a good sense of how to make that part of his equation.
Salonen will announce the programming for his final season as music conductor in a week; Dudamel returns to L.A. to conduct Salonen's "Insomnia" and Berlioz's "Symphonie fantastique" at the end of March. While  a smooth transition benefits all parties, this will be one fascinating torch passing: Salonen stepping away with a body of work that stands on its one yet is clearly only a significant chapter in his artistic life; Dudamel arriving with the world's eyes affixed to every move. It can't be comfortable, but it should make great theater and, the locals hope, a triumph.

Patrick Goldstein's Tuesday column was killed by the Los Angeles Times, though LAObserved.com snagged a copy, and in it Goldstein suggested that the Times follow the lead of the U.K. Mail on Sunday, which recently included copies of the new Prince CD in its Sunday edition. Circulation hit 2.9 million.
His argument is rock solid: Newspapers need to attract readers; so called "heritage" artists are looking for new ways to get music into the hands of consumers; partnerships would help save the paper from compromises such as front-page ads.
But what he proposes is getting music from "heritage" artists, or presumably ones he likes: Elvis Costello, Beck, Ryan Adams, Ry Cooder, Lucinda Williams and Steve Earle. His mistake? Prince was a superstar and remains a person of interest to millions. On top of that, he is an intelligent free agent willing to turn his back on the old-fashioned machine.
What Goldstein doesn't appear to realize is that all but one of the artists he lists, Earle, have comfortable deals with major labels. Recording costs are picked up, they get artistic freedom and they have a marketing partner in the label. Unlike Prince, none of them were ever superstars.
In Los Angeles, an empire built on hype, the albums that the L.A. Times should be including
in Sunday editions need to have mainstream appeal and a marketing tie-in. The hip factor is not necessarily who is on the disc, just the existence of free entertainment.
Disney should be on the horn with the Times suggesting a "High School Musical 2" sampler or a single from Hillary Duff; producers and performers from a small film like "Once," which has built an audience slowly, should be looking into what it can do to drive more soundtrack sales and box office.
Newspapers have to supply something that a good percentage of its readers might want; that means "American Idol" finalists,superstars of the past and the kid that your kids watch on TV.Katharine McPhee, Mick Jagger and Raven - Sunday could be made for you.
Prince got his CD in the paper to coincide with him playing 21 days in a newly christened venue. It's about keeping his name out there. Finding another artist of his stature willing and capable of going that route will be tough.
If Elton John moved his Red Piano show from Las Vegas to another city, a giveaway would be smart. Cheap Trick is playing the Hollywood Bowl and pretending to be the Beatles so why not reacquaint people with their catalog? And wouldn't it be marvelous if Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic created a send-off disc when he departs the podium next year? Talk about an item that would have people talking across the country and Europe.
The guy that would be the best fit, considering the demographic of current newspaper readers, is reportedly checking out his recording options. James Taylor - who has not signed with Starbucks' Hear Music. A new album from JT. Free. That would be a coup.