With film score writers battling computer programs to have their
music played in a movie, and with their artistic creativity limited
both by budgets and the whims of the directors and producers who
control their projects, composers may be left wondering in what
direction their art is heading.

It’s not unusual for fifth-year ethnomusicology student
Jonathan Keyes to take a 6 a.m. flight across the country, play a
show at a college campus, and then catch a flight to Los Angeles
the next morning so he can get back in time for class.

Going all the way back to the days of standing in the junior
high lunch line talking about the last night’s episode,
it’s clear “Friends” has been more than just a TV
show ““ it’s been a reason to hang out with friends
Thursday nights, and has given us something to chat about with them
the next day.

The theme “Steal the Show”Â set the stage for a
formidable musical battle on Friday night as to who owned the
Spring Sing spotlight in the Los Angeles Tennis Center.

Who needs “American Idol” when we have our very own
high-drama performance contest, Spring Sing, right here at
UCLA?
Friday night, 17 acts in the categories of solo/duet, band, a
cappella/ensemble and production will each have three minutes to
belt out their best tune in front of an audience of 5,000 people at
the UCLA Tennis Center.

For many people, the word retirement conjures up an image of a
poolside house in Palm Springs where a game of tennis or bridge is
the most important activity on the daily agenda.

For cinematographer Laszlo Kovacs, there exists a sort of
“pay it forward” mentality in regards to the film
industry. Because his teacher taught him in Hungary, he has
promised to educate the next generation of filmmakers in
return.

A group composed of cello, violin, bass, percussion and voice
usually conjures the image of chamber musicians. But the four women
of Agua de Coco, who perform tonight at 6 p.m.

At military funerals today, it’s not an unusual sight to
see a person playing “Taps” with a digital bugle, or to
hear a recording of the famous tune playing on a boom box.

Even though drums were banned in colonial Peru, African slaves
living there refused to abandon the rhythms that were so integral
to their culture. They grabbed anything they could beat or shake,
transforming ordinary items like storage crates and chairs into
tools that would preserve their musical tradition.