Good to be a Raelette — @ Hollywood Bowl Ray Charles tribute 1

Music
A stellar line-up heading our way at the Hollywood Bowl July 11. It’s the Ray Charles tribute concert co-produced by Phil Ramone and Gregg Field in association with the LA Philharmonic. At the core of a packed program (I hope it’s coherent; there so much talent crammed in) — four amazing “girl” singers replicating the ...

A note from Ojai on the 2012 Music Festival…

Music
by 
The rural town of Ojai is a little more than an hour and a little more than a lifetime outside of Los Angeles. In my mind’s eye Ojai is dreamlike and fantastical, like the Hundred-Acre Wood of Winnie the Pooh (in reality Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, a little more than an hour outside of ...

The opera Pusherman

Music
Curtis Mayfield was a genius and “Pusherman” perhaps his greatest composition. Someone should develop it into an opera.

Awake in a dream

Film · Music
I am very sorry this lovely video clip starts with a terrible commercial. I hope it is worth the wait for you.

Jacaranda’s garden party on fire 1

Music
Remember the old-fashioned garden party? Where proper ladies and gentlemen sipped, nibbled, noshed, chewed, grazed, and gabbed? Well, forget about that. Welcome to Jacaranda‘s annual garden-party fundraiser event. That’s where the smart Los Angeles contemporary music society will introduce its new season in plein-air. And don’t forget your sun hat. Because you may need to ...

Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers to raise their voices in Pasadena

Music
One of the world’s premiere choral ensembles specializing in African-American music, The Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers, will perform on June 24, 2012, at Pasadena Presbyterian Church in the Playhouse Arts District of downtown Pasadena. The program will focus on traditional and contemporary spirituals and gospels and works by contemporary African-American composers.

Investing in artists: winners of the 2012 Alpert Awards

Dance · Film · Music · Theater · Visual arts
Los Angeles arts honchos gathered at the oh-so-cool Santa Monica digs of the Herb Alpert Foundation for a joyous occasion on Friday April 10. A generous buffet luncheon celebrated 18 years of Herb Alpert and Lani Hall’s philanthropy. And Irene Borger, the award program’s long-time director, gave her annual recognition to five deserving mid-career creators ...

Herb Alpert & Lani Hall, outstanding arts philanthropists, oversee 2012 Alpert Awards

Dance · Film · Music · Theater · Visual arts
The Herb Alpert Foundation and California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) have awarded the 18th annual Alpert Award in the Arts to five exceptional mid–career artists. The award, a prize of $75,000, recognizes past performance and future promise to artists working in Dance, Film/Video, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts. Herb Alpert, the legendary musician and ...

Bob Marley remembered 2

Film · Music
What I learned about reggae artist Bob Marley from “Marley,” an inspiring new documentary produced by his son: he was biracial (I did not know that) he was the soul of jamaica  he was gorgeous and nicely built he was all music, from childhood he was all artist, beatific in the final years of his ...

East Village building echoing art history gets preservation award

Architecture & Design · Dance · Film · Music
Our story concerns a grand, old New York City structure with a noble track record in art and cultural history. The pink lady in the picture has been home to creative endeavors in music, dance and film. Last year, the exterior of the building receive a $2.1 million restoration as part of the renovations of ...