An eerie, spectral sound drifts from the recesses of Schoenberg Hall, where an orchestra rehearsal for a Royce Hall performance takes place. At first, the dissonant melody makes little sense as the string instruments climb higher and higher on steps of parallel fifths, the woodwinds and brass attempting to follow. But the musicians know to […]
Author Archives: Shreya Aiyar
Aditya Prakash Ensemble blends jazz, classical Indian music
Over the last three years, the Aditya Prakash Ensemble has played host to a family reunion of musical genres. In its compositions, the ensemble’s unconventional comtemporary style – an ascending scale voiced by an Indian classical singer, a dissonant riff played by a Brazilian guitarist – unites the Indian classical music style with its much […]
Album Review: ‘Doris’ by Earl Sweatshirt
After braving the storm of misguided “Free Earl” campaigns and absentee fathers, 19-year-old Earl Sweatshirt is back with his debut album “Doris.” A member of the Los Angeles-based hip-hop collective Odd Future, Earl Sweatshirt was first introduced to the hip-hop scene as a 16-year-old featured on the 2010 mixtape “Earl,” which casually throws around images […]
Clark memorial sets stage for outdoor theater
As the day wears on, the gardens and lawns of UCLA’s William Andrews Clark Memorial Library transform into an unorthodox yet intimate theater stage, where audiences picnic through a scandalous 19th-century birthday party set on the library’s spacious grounds.
Graduate student strives to save Kichwa flute tradition
In some ways, the whistling, chanting and atonal flute melodies that pervade the Ecuadorian village of Kotama sound like tangled webs of rhythm that are difficult to understand. But for Jessie Vallejo, the ritualistic rhythms and sounds were the beginnings of a journey to revive an ancient musical tradition and way of life. The night […]