The act of conducting in itself, of waving my arms in the air and being in charge, I didn't miss. I missed the sensual pleasure of being in contact with music.

Salonen later took the orchestra on many other tours of the United States Europe and Asia and residencies at the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland The Proms in London in Cologne for a festival of Salonen's own works and perhaps most notably in 1996 at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris for a Stravinsky festival conducted by Salonen and Pierre Boulez; it was during this Paris residency that key Philharmonic board members heard the orchestra perform in improved acoustics and were re-invigorated to lead fundraising efforts to complete construction of Walt Disney Concert Hall. auf den ersten blick und ohne zu wissen. " As a European Modernist Salonen said he had been inculcated with negatives such as to avoid melody harmonic identity and rhythmic pulse.

He is currently Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London and Conductor Laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.