This morning, something French is on the menu! The mellow majesty of the French horn has captivated hunters and composers alike. Weber, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, and The Beach Boys knew every rose has its horn. Tune in Saturday at 8:15 or 3:15 to hear the feature on the radio – and you can come back here to listen again! And you can listen to more Car Tunes episodes here! Listen to the feature! The post Saturday Morning Car Tunes: The French Horn appeared first on Classical KUSC ..read more

This week’s Classical Californian is conductor Nicole Paiement, the Founder and Artistic Director of the Bay Area’s Opera Parallèle, which spotlights brand-new and lesser-known works. In addition to premiering operas, they have also been responsible for creating chamber versions of new works (like John Harbison’s The Great Gatsby and Terence Blanchard’s Champion) that allow the pieces to reach a wider audience. Paiement is also Principal Guest Conductor at the Dallas Opera, where she’s a mentor at the Hart Institute for Women Conductors. She’s selected a symphonic and jazz hybrid piece by Ter ..read more

Do you slappa da bass? Across all genres, the double bass sets the ryhthm of the music. Bottesini, Dragonetti, Esperanza Spalding, and A Tribe Called Quest tag along to tell us more. Photo by Gary Knight Tune in Saturday at 8:15 or 3:15 to hear the feature on the radio – and you can come back here to listen again! And you can listen to more Car Tunes episodes here! Listen to the episode below! The post Saturday Morning Car Tunes: The Double Bass appeared first on Classical KUSC ..read more

Lara Downes is joined this time by British singer/songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae and Theaster Gates, who is an author, professor, and founder of the Rebuild Foundation. The conversation takes place, fittingly, at the Sony Island Arts Bank, a repository of history of Black American arts and culture that Gates has created. It celebrates the historical texts and works and provides a counter-narrative to an “American story” that all too frequently was told only from the white perspective. They discuss the value of that preservation, and the importance of recognizing the accomplishments of today as ..read more

Photo of Sameer Patel by Sam Zauscher Our Classical Californian this week is Sameer Patel, Music Director and Orchestra Conductor of the La Jolla Symphony and Chorus. He’s also the Artistic Director of the San Diego Youth Symphony, and was named by Musical America “New Artist of the Month” this past April. He’s chosen a selection of pieces including a late Beethoven String Quartet, a choral work of empowerment by Caroline Shaw, an anguished song by Osvaldo Golijov. and more. There’s even a solo piano cover of a song by David Bowie. Tune in at 7pm on Wednesday when he takes the microphone, and ..read more

Get those oboes off the table! Orchestral tuning hinges on the oboe’s clear and bright tone, which is maybe why Rossini, Berlioz, Cher, and Sufjan Stevens liked it. Tune in Saturday at 8:15 or 3:15 to hear the feature on the radio – and you can come back here to listen again! And you can listen to more Car Tunes episodes here! Listen to the episode below! The post Saturday Morning Car Tunes: The Oboe appeared first on Classical KUSC ..read more

This week our Classical Californian is composer Inon Zur – who’s written for film and television, but is best known for the scores he’s written for video games. Growing up in Israel, he was introduced to some of the pieces of music that he’s going to share, imagining stories that would accompany works by Beethoven, Brahms, Dvorak, and Stravinsky and more. His most recent videogame score is for Starfield, which he describes as a space-exploration game, in which you get to “fly anywhere… everywhere, time is not a limit, distance is not a limit.” We’ll hear some of his works as well. Tune in at ..read more

California Dreamin’ Nov. 16-18, 2023 at 8 p.m. Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall November’s Classical KUSC Partner Show is… Pacific Symphony presents, California Dreamin’.  Pacific Symphony welcomes Van Cliburn Competition gold medalist Vadym Kholodenko to perform Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 4. Led by guest conductor Ludovic Morlot, the concert is part of the California Festival: A Celebration of New Music and also includes Debussy’s La Mer and music by Adam Schoenberg and Gabriella Smith. Save 30% with promo code KUSC. You can find out more here! You can enter to win on ..read more

This week, we’re pulling out all the stops—literally. As a special Halloween edition, this episode focuses on the spookiest of instruments: the organ! Bach, Widor, and Saint-Saëns came all dressed up to the party… with a special guest appearance from the Phantom of the Opera. Tune in Saturday at 8:15 or 3:15 to hear the feature on the radio – and you can come back here to listen again! And you can listen to more Car Tunes episodes here! Listen to the episode below! The post Saturday Morning Car Tunes: The Organ appeared first on Classical KUSC ..read more

Sundays from 7-9 PM starting October 29th, host Suraj Partha takes you to the USC Thornton School of Music for a new concert series called In the Halls of Thornton! Over seven weeks, feel the excitement and hear the music crowding the halls of this dynamic music school – from compositions by star faculty to performances by rising stars. Walking around USC Thornton for my first day of undergrad was like walking straight into my favorite musical recordings. Whether it’s Professors Pepe Romero (classical guitarist), Ted Hearne (composer, Pulitzer Prize finalist), or my teacher, Peter Erskine (dr ..read more