Fowler Museum at UCLA receives $1M donation from Jay, Deborah Last

The Fowler Museum at UCLA announced Wednesday that it received a $1 million donation from longtime donors Jay and Deborah Last. The Lasts will also match up to $14 million from other donations. The donation will continue to contribute to expanding its curatorial staff and improving accessibility to its permanent collection, said Michael Ruff, the […]

UCLA lecturer creates Coachella landmark with art installation

Jimenez Lai had to crane his neck the first time he saw his 52-foot-tall art installation. He felt a sudden rush of emotion – he hadn’t seen how his work would look in real life until it was installed in a grassy field at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. “I think I […]

Q&A: Director of opera studies wants students to see opera as accessible

Peter Kazaras found solace in theater and opera amid Vietnam War demonstrations, protests and clouds of tear gas. For Kazaras, the director of opera studies at UCLA, music and theater provided a haven away from the chaos of the outside world to retreat to throughout his undergraduate years. Though Kazaras initially worked at a law […]

Album Review: ‘Cosmic Explorer’

Japanese trio Perfume doesn’t look like it would be an electronic dance music group. The girl group’s doll-like aesthetic is sharply juxtaposed with futuristic beats, creating an effect of a delicate comet that does not look dangerous but still burns through the night sky. With “Cosmic Explorer,” their latest release, members Ayaka Nishiwaki, Yuka Kashino […]

Chamber group debuts professor’s composition influenced by Persian poetry

David Lefkowitz found the long and storied history of the Jewish people in the plaintive sounds of the Persian ney and oud.   In their dispersion from their religious center of Jerusalem, the Jewish people searched for over 2500 years for a place to once again call home. Lefkowitz heard in the flute-like ney, the […]

WACSmash allows dancers to showcase individuality

WACSmash, an annual dance showcase held at the Kaufman Hall Dance Theater, will feature interdisciplinary dance works highlighting the UCLA dance community this weekend. Daily Bruin A&E features three fourth-year students who discuss the role of dance both in the show and in students’ daily lives. Nikki Friedman Producing a WACSmash show has been on […]

Student musician captures momentary emotions with R&B, verse

An unfamiliar and haunting melody snuck up on Chris Pree the same way it always did. He would be walking to class, talking to friends or trying to do his homework when a tune would tangle itself around his thoughts. His instincts told him to get the melody down from the nebulous space of his […]