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American composer John Adams is a major focus of the new Great Performers and London Symphony Orchestra concert seasons from February until July 2010 when six of his works are performed. These include the European premiere of City Noir, a co-commission by the LSO and Los Angeles Philharmonic, a new production of his highly acclaimed Broadway style show, I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, and three other Adams premieres. The LSO’s second concert with the composer/conductor features the European premiere of City Noir, a work inspired by the ‘noir’ films of ‘40s and ‘50s Los Angeles. The work has been co-commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic (world premiere on 8 October 2009); London Symphony Orchestra (European premiere at Barbican on 11 March 2010), also in association with Cité de la Musique-Salle Pleyel (LSO performs French premiere on 16 March 2010); The Eduard van Beinum Foundation at the request of the ZaterdagMatinee, the Dutch Radio Concert Series in the Concertgebouw Amsterdam (performance in November 2010); and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. The programme on 11 March 2010 also includes Ravel’s Valses Nobles et Sentimentales, Debussy’s Préludes, orchestrated by Colin Matthews, and Stravinsky’s Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments with pianist Jeremy Denk.