Strunz & Farah @ Catalina’s

Photos by Linda A. Rapka

It’s not every night you hear a beatboxing flutist, but with international instrumental guitar duo Strunz & Farah one can’t expect a typical concert experience.

Acclaimed as much for their international virtuosity as for their dazzling eclectic live performances, Middle Eastern-flavored jazz/flamenco duo Costa Rican Jorge Strunz and Iranian Ardeshir Farah are credited for pioneering guitar-focused world music before the term even existed. The Grammy-nominated pair shares a prolific partnership spanning more than three decades. They met in 1979 after learning of their shared ability to play mind-blowing instrumental guitar improvisations at lightning speed.

The Nightmare Comes Alive: Danny Elfman’s Music from the films of Tim Burton

In a string of Halloween concerts, composer Danny Elfman and director Tim Burton celebrate 28 years of wonderfully macabre film music magic

by Linda A. Rapka

“‘Twas a long time ago,
Longer now than it seems
in a place that perhaps
you’ve seen in your dreams…”

These lyrics as sung by gangly, ghoulish Jack Skellington in the opening scene of Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” fittingly describe the nearly three-decade long collaboration between the director and composer Danny Elfman.

Celebrating 28 years of their wonderfully macabre partnership, a series of film music concerts debuted at London’s Royal Albert Hall before landing at the Nokia Theatre in downtown Los Angeles the nights leading up to Halloween.

Appreciating music with the LA Phil “Inside the Music” classes @ Disney Hall

Depending on who you’re talking to, the words “classical music” will either elicit sheer joy or utter terror. The genre, so rich in history and complicated with vastly varied styles, can be confusing and downright intimidating for those who have not had the opportunity to enjoy its study.

Strawberry Alarm Clock @ the Satellite 4/25/12

Though they weren’t delivered to the stage upon mystical Persian rugs, as was their usual mode of transport in the late 1960s thanks to some hulky roadies, Strawberry Alarm Clock did conjure plenty of magic at its show at the Satellite.

The vintage psychedelic rockers, best known for their 1967 gold hit “Incense and Peppermints,” which saw newfound revival thanks to the stellar musical taste of Austin Powers, performed a rare live show at the popular Silver Lake club in support of its first album of new material in 42 years.

¡Ay Caramba! Interview with “The Simpsons” composer Alf Clausen

“This is the most exciting thing I’ve seen since Halley’s comet collided with the moon.” The Bridge Recording studio in Glendale greeted Alf Clausen and the Local 47 orchestra to “The Simpsons”  500th scoring session with giant golden celebratory balloons adorning the entrance. Alf posed beneath them holding the Certificate of Honor presented to him by Local 47 President Vince Trombetta on behalf of the musicians union. photo by Linda Rapka

‘The Simpsons’ orchestra and Alf Clausen celebrate 500 episodes

by Linda Rapka

“The Simpsons” celebrated a landmark achievement in television history last month, airing its 500th episode Feb. 19.

The momentous scoring session took place Feb. 3 at the Bridge Recording studio in Glendale, which greeted the musicians with giant golden celebratory balloons spelling out “500” on either side of the entrance.

“Dancing With the Stars”: Classical Week

Jennifer Hudson rehearses two new songs before that evening’s performance.

Co-host Tom Bergeron chats with dancer Kym Johnson as the singers rehearse.

Louis van Amstel and Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett get in a great final practice dance.

Jennifer Hudson backed by the large orchestra rehearses her numbers as Louis van Amstel awaits his cue to join partner Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett on the dance floor.

“Dancing With the Stars” musical director Harold Wheeler leads a swelled 46-piece
orchestra in the final rehearsal April 12 for the specially themed Classical Week.

Lights, camera, action! The lighting crew gets things ready for the big show.

ABC hit series “Dancing With the Stars” added a touch of class in April with the launch of Classical Week.Pushed by the show’s co-executive producer Joe Sungkur, the theme week featured an orchestra doubled to an impressive 46 pieces performing traditional and new classical music. Selections included a Spanish double-step pasodoble and a 200-year-old Viennese waltz as nine celebrity couples competed to outshine one another on the dance floor and save themselves from elimination.

Mogwai @ the Mayan 5/10/11

As published by L.A. RECORD:

   

   

 

As with the Beach Boys and Sigur Rós, Mogwai has a definite case of “landscape manifest in music.”

The Passion and the Fury of David Axelrod (musician) – interview

Photo by B Plus, courtesy Dana Axelrod.

The Passion and the Fury of David Axelrod

interview by Linda Rapka

A golden producer in the heyday of Capitol Records, David Axelrod lent his magic to hit jazz, funk and soul records of the 1960s and ’70s. He churned out a succession of gold records and top singles with artists including Lou Rawls, Cannonball Adderley and the Electric Prunes, and his signature sound is a sampling favorite of today’s hip hop artists. His keen eye for spotting unlikely successes garnered him a lasting imprint on some of the most eccentric albums of the era. Sailor-mouthed and charmingly surly, Axelrod minces no words about his improbable highs and cavernous lows during six decades in the industry.

Dudamel “Mahler’s 9th” at Walt Disney Concert Hall 1/15/11

As published by LA RECORD:

I’ll never forget my first encounter with Gustavo Dudamel. His inaugural performance with the LA Phil back in November 2009 was illuminating. It was transcendent. It was…well, kind of fake, really. You see, my first encounter with our city’s heroic Maestro did not happen within the Douglas-fir lined walls of the prestigious Walt Disney Concert Hall. I was seated on a slab of cold concrete in the middle of the Music Center Plaza. I attended not the concert itself, but a real-time telecast a few blocks away put on for all the unfortunate souls without a golden ticket. The setting didn’t exactly lend to the experience the focused attention reserved for classical concerts. Instead, my attention was split among myriad gesticulating, wild-haired clones splashed across the numerous oversized screens surrounding the plaza, which itself was filled with talkative classical newbies and a handful of the obligatory crying babies. Thus, the Jan. 15 concert of the LA Phil performing Mahler’s 9th was my first real encounter with The Dude. I’m not going to pretend I am an expert in the classical realm, but the musical experience was exquisite, and I can say in all certainty that the real-life experience is more fulfilling than watching on a screen. The nuances of the music, the tangible energy emanating from the musicians, and the uninhibited vibrancy of the conductor are a package worthy of the in-person experience. And although this season the LA Phil has followed in the footsteps of a growing number of orchestras in the country by transmitting live performances to audiences in movie theaters, if you have the chance, and the cash, opt for the real deal.

—Linda Rapka

Phoenix @ Hollywood Bowl 9/18/10

As published by LA RECORD:

“It’s Saturday night. It’s the Hollywood Bowl. It doesn’t get any better than this,” gushed Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars at the start of the band’s first Bowl experience. “I never thought we’d be here.” Which is funny, because the band seemed right at home in front of the sea of 17,000 fans at the sold-out hillside venue. Launched into the stratosphere by their latest record, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix—and with more than a little help from the Cadillac SRX commercial featuring the catchy “1900”— Phoenix kicked off their U.S. tour with nothing short of a spectacle.