Category Archives: Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc.

“The Rite of Spring” served up 3 ways: shaken, straight up, and blended (c/o Ojai, Pacific Symphony, and UCI)
All Reviews / Music News & Info: Classical / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc. / Other classical music concerts and recitals (in So Cal and beyond) / Pacific Symphony / Reviews 2012/2013

“The Rite of Spring” served up 3 ways: shaken, straight up, and blended (c/o Ojai, Pacific Symphony, and UCI)

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At the opening talk of this year’s Ojai Music Festival last Thursday, Ara Guzelimien (Provost & Dean of The Julliard School and former Artistic Director of the Ojai Festival) astutely observed that The Rite of Spring has become big business.  What used to scare audiences now regularly packs houses.  With all of the buzz surrounding … Continue reading →

And now for something completely different: a chronological cover of Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky”
Humor / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc.

And now for something completely different: a chronological cover of Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky”

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Mad props to the esteemed Brian Lauritzen for unearthing this gem.  As he says, it’s better than the original.  And don’t worry, there’s nothing wrong with the audio — it’s supposed to be like that, you’ll see. (Oh, and if you’re wondering what the original is like, click HERE) Continue reading →

An atypical pairing of good music
Music News & Info: Classical / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc.

An atypical pairing of good music

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Saw links to the two videos below via Twitter earlier today, and I felt compelled to share both of them here.  If they seem like an unlikely match — well, what can I say, I have diverse tastes in music. The first is Ligeti’s “Hungarian Rock (Chaconne),” originally written for harpsichord but arranged here for … Continue reading →

The English Beat is still ranking full stop after all these years
All Reviews / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc. / Reviews 2012/2013

The English Beat is still ranking full stop after all these years

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“Iconic” is a term that can get bandied about willy-nilly, especially when it comes to artists of the various genres of popular music.  When it comes to the 1980’s 2-Tone ska movement, however, it is a word that justifiably applies to Dave Wakeling, leader of The English Beat. Together with Madness and The Specials, The … Continue reading →

Twitter: where Esa-Pekka Salonen and The Rite Offspring (?!) coexist
Humor / Music News & Info: Classical / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc.

Twitter: where Esa-Pekka Salonen and The Rite Offspring (?!) coexist

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For the longest time when it came to Twitter, I fought the power.  I thought it served best as a source of comedic fodder for late night talk shows and their friends (e.g. how could anything ever top this brilliance?  I gained a newfound respect for Josh Groban after seeing it). I finally jumped into … Continue reading →

The not-quite-sure-if-it’s-public domain: Prokofiev, Joy Division, and confusion over who can do what for how much money
Music News & Info: Classical / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc.

The not-quite-sure-if-it’s-public domain: Prokofiev, Joy Division, and confusion over who can do what for how much money

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I recently finished jury duty, and I’ve been in a bit of a jurisprudential kinda mood ever since. Given all of the recent brouhaha about SOPA (and yes, it was definitely a brouhaha — not a kerfuffle and much bigger than a hubbub), I’m a bit surprised that there hasn’t been more discussion in the classical … Continue reading →

But if you want me to go, you should just say so
Los Angeles Philharmonic / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc.

But if you want me to go, you should just say so

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Got a pleasant surprise in my inbox this morning: an email from the Los Angeles Philharmonic saying that Bob Mould and some special guests, including Dave Grohl and Ben Gibbard, would be appearing at Walt Disney Concert Hall in November. Wait. Bob Mould, Dave Grohl, Ben Gibbard, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Walt Disney Concert Hall, … Continue reading →

Rodrigo y Gabriela (et al) at the Hollywood Bowl
All Reviews / Los Angeles Philharmonic / Music News & Info: Classical / Music News & Info: Rock, Jazz, World Music, etc. / Reviews 2011/2012

Rodrigo y Gabriela (et al) at the Hollywood Bowl

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A near-capacity crowd filled the Hollywood Bowl to the brim this past Saturday night.  Gustavo Dudamel was in the house,  along with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and some other folks.  But for once, the crowd was not really there to see The Dude.  Sure, there were a few screams of “We love you, Gustavo!” but … Continue reading →