It was a fateful September in 1983 when Esa-Pekka Salonen received a call from his agent saying the Philharmonia Orchestra needed someone to replace conductor Michael Tilson Thomas at the last minute, performing Mahler's Third Symphony in London. He said yes and the rest is history. Hear the story from the Philharmonia's now Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, Esa-Pekka Salonen, who took a moment out of his busy schedule this summer to share the ups and downs of that fateful decision and his enduring relationship with the Philharmonia Orchestra.

Salonen conducts Mahler's Third Symphony on Sunday 1 October 2017 at Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/1714