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Opera Review: QUEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BOTTOM OF FLEET STREET (Heartbeat Opera, NY)
A CUT ABOVE THE REST Heartbeat Opera’s gloriously filthy Halloween extravaganza gives Sondheim’s demon barber a decidedly different kind of clientele After sunset, the official hours of Judson Memorial Church may be over. But inside, worship is very much in session with the delightfully deranged Queeney Todd: The Demon Bottom of Fleet Street. A musical…
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Opera Review: CARMEN (LA Opera)
THE SINGERS SOAR, THE STAGING SWELLS Domingo Hindoyan and a superb cast illuminate Bizet’s masterpiece, even as an overstuffed new production threatens to obscure it In 1888 Friedrich Nietzsche wrote that he had just heard Carmen for the twentieth time. He had broken with Wagner. Bizet gave him just the weapon he needed. “It approaches…
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Opera Review: DON GIOVANNI (Lyric Opera)
A THIRD TIME IS TOO MUCH FOR THIS DON A superb cast cannot disguise the problems in Robert Falls’ revival of Mozart’s opera, whose treatment of sexual violence feels increasingly dated This Robert Falls-directed production of Don Giovanni was the first opera I reviewed upon my arrival in Chicago in 2014. I mostly loved it…
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Concert Review: BRAHMS and BRUCKNER (Los Angeles Master Chorale / Walt Disney Concert Hall)
FROM FULL THROTTLE TO PERFECT HARMONY Grant Gershon finds restraint and consolation in Brahms, while his world-class choir conquers Bruckner’s thunder The Los Angeles Master Chorale opened its season September 27 at Walt Disney Concert Hall with an unannounced piece. Before we heard a note of Bruckner, the chorus sang “America the Beautiful,” in a…
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Best AI Music Video Generators for Full Songs: Storytelling, Performance and Beat Sync Compared
Generating an impressive five-second AI video is no longer especially difficult. The harder question is what happens when the music lasts three, four or five minutes. A full music video has to survive dozens of shots without losing its performer, visual language or sense of direction. A verse may call for restraint. A chorus may…
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Music Review: BAY STATE HOT JAZZ FESTIVAL (Medford, MA)
HOT JAZZ, COOL COMMUNITY Eight bands, two days, and a lively crowd keep traditional jazz swinging in Medford Now in its fourth year, the Bay State Hot Jazz Festival brought eight traditional jazz acts to the banks of the Mystic River for two days at the end of August. Organized by Annie Linders, band leader…
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LIVE CONCERT VIDEOS: WHERE TO FIND FULL PERFORMANCES IN GOOD QUALITY
A studio recording and a live concert are two completely different experiences. In the studio, every part can be re-recorded and mixed to technical perfection. But something important often disappears in the process: unpredictability, the thing that makes music feel alive. On stage, everything works differently. Musicians change the structure of songs, stretch out instrumental…
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ORCHESTRAS ARE NOW PLAYING VIDEO GAME MUSIC: HOW GAME SOUNDTRACKS ENTERED THE CONCERT HALL
Walk into a symphony hall on the right evening, and you might find a full orchestra and choir performing not Beethoven or Mahler, but the score to a video game. The audience, many of them dressed for a night at the theatre, applaud between movements and rise for a standing ovation at the end. A…
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Concert Preview: KUKIEL–LAMCELLARI–GLICKLICH PIANO TRIO (The Music Guild / Los Angeles)
A SEASON BEGINS IN THREES Three young musicians open the Music Guild season with Rachmaninov, Shostakovich, and Brahms The Music Guild opens its 82nd season on Monday, Sept. 14, with the Kukiel–Lamcellari–Glicklich Piano Trio, bringing together three accomplished young musicians: Los Angeles Philharmonic violinist Vivian Kukiel, cellist Jayden Lamcellari, and pianist Samuel Glicklich. The program,…
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Concert Preview: AMERICAN SOUND TAKES FLIGHT (MUSE/IQUE / Beverly Hills & Pasadena)
COPLAND, PRINCE, PARTON, AND PAUL SIMON? YES, PLEASE. MUSE/IQUE connects some unlikely musical dots, then open the doors at Ambassador Auditorium for a free season finale MUSE/IQUE has come up with one hell of a program for American Sound Takes Flight: From Aaron Copland to Paul Simon — Our Musical Pursuit of Happiness. Artistic and…
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Music Preview: CAMERATA PACIFICA OPENS ITS 37TH SEASON
THREE GREAT PLAYERS, TWO MASTERPIECES, ONE TERRIFIC ENSEMBLE Camerata Pacifica opens its 37th season with a knockout pairing of Rachmaninoff and Schubert I saw Camerata Pacifica three times last season, and I’ll just say it: they’re the best chamber ensemble in Los Angeles. There are plenty of organizations that can assemble first-rate musicians and put…
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Music Review: JAMES TAYLOR & HIS ALL-STAR BAND (Wolf Trap / Vienna, VA)
RAIN OR SHINE, SWEET BABY JAMES DELIVERS At 78, James Taylor still has the songs, the voice, the humor and one hell of a band There are concerts that are simply enjoyable, and then there are nights like James Taylor and his All-Star Band at Wolf Trap on August 30, when great songs, superb musicians…
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BEST MUSIC CAMP IN LOS ANGELES? 7 PICKS FOR TEENS PAST DAY CAMP, NOT YET AUDITIONING
Your kid has graduated from “Hot Cross Buns” and now binges beat-making tutorials, dreaming of roaring crowds. The leap from neighborhood lessons to conservatory auditions still feels too big—for them and for you. You want instruction, not babysitting; pro studios, not finger-paint. Safety counts, fun counts, and no one’s stressing over Juilliard-style try-outs yet. Only…
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Music Preview: PACIFIC JAZZ ORCHESTRA BENEFIT CONCERT (October 10, 2026 | L.A.)
A JAZZY 60TH FOR CHRIS WALDEN Pacific Jazz Orchestra gathers some formidable friends for its founder’s milestone birthday I’ve seen jazz pianist Emmet Cohen in New York at least half a dozen times, and next to Sullivan Fortner, I can’t think of a pianist working today who leaves me more stunned. Cohen is one of…
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IN TEACHING MUSIC, THE EXAMPLE HAS TO BE THE REAL THING
Anyone who has tried to teach music at a distance runs into the same wall within about a week: the thing being taught cannot be written down, and it cannot be paraphrased either. A producer explaining why a hi hat pattern sits behind the beat can describe it in a paragraph, and the paragraph will…
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Music Preview: LOOKING WEST (MUSE/IQUE)
GO WEST, MUSE/IQUE From the open range to Hollywood, MUSE/IQUE explores the music that made the West a legend Just what made the cowboy one of America’s most enduring exports? The hat? The horse? Gary Cooper? Clint Eastwood squinting into the sun? MUSE/IQUE has another answer: the music. For Looking West: How the Myth of…
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Opera Review: MEROLA GRAND FINALE (War Memorial Opera House / San Francisco)
A FINALE WITH A BRIGHT FUTURE Merola’s newest generation of opera artists brings plenty of promise to the War Memorial Opera House The Merola Opera Program’s 2026 Summer Festival came to a celebratory close with its annual Merola Grand Finale at the War Memorial Opera House. Conducted by William Long and directed with aplomb by…
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Review: THE BEST TOOL TO CREATE A LIP SYNC SINGING VIDEO FROM A PHOTO. 6 AI WORKFLOWS FOR MUSICIANS IN 2026
How today’s AI tools turn a single portrait, production still or character image into a convincing musical performance. Quick answer: Freebeat is the strongest overall choice for musicians who want to turn a photo into a lip-synced singing performance and then develop that performance into a fuller music video. Hedra is excellent for expressive close-ups,…
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Concert Review: GERSHWIN, BERNSTEIN & AMERICAN MOSAIC (National Symphony Orchestra / Renée Fleming / Wolf Trap / Vienna, VA)
AMERICA, ORCHESTRATED Bernstein and Gershwin soar, Renée Fleming enchants, and even the Virginia wildlife gets into the act Saturday night’s National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) concert at Wolf Trap is part of the nation’s America250 celebrations, marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Conducted by Gianandrea Noseda, the wide-ranging program offers several perspectives on…
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Music Preview: A CONCERT FOR VENEZUELA (Gustavo Dudamel & LA Phil / Hollywood Bowl)
DUDAMEL’S FAREWELL BECOMES A HOMECOMING For his final Bowl concert as LA Phil Music & Artistic Director, Gustavo Dudamel turns the spotlight toward Venezuela What was originally planned as a celebration of Gustavo Dudamel and his extraordinary years with the Los Angeles Philharmonic has become something considerably more urgent. On Sunday, August 23, Dudamel conducts…
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