A glimpse of gospel, jazz, and soul from the great legends is what inspires the sound of pianist Theron Brown’s music. But the reason he plays is to encourage and influence people through his talents. Originally from Zanesville, Ohio, Theron currently resides in Akron, Ohio, where he is Professor of Practice at The University of Akron teaching jazz piano, and the program coordinator for Curated Storefront’s Artist Residency Program at the ‘I Promise School’. Theron also serves as an educator for the interactive piano learning app, Playground Sessions. He is heavily involved in the music community as the founder and artistic director of the Rubber City Jazz & Blues Festival, which takes place annually in Akron, Ohio’s downtown historic district. Theron performs and tours regularly with his trio that includes Zaire Darden on drums and Jordan McBride on bass. He is currently working on his second album. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40023]
Earl Thomas was born into a musical family in rural Tennessee and grew up in a house brimming with music. His father was a bluesman and his mother was a gospel singer, so music is in his veins. He stumbled into the music industry by accident, which led to a vibrant 30-year career that is steeped in African American tradition and culture. His music is a potent mix of the traditional and contemporary gospel, expressed in an impressive music catalogue. As a singer songwriter, his music – deeply rooted in the blues and gospel – is infused with contemporary sensibilities of rock, soul, and rhythm & blues. Thomas’ latest production, after a three-year hiatus, is all vintage gospel or what the singer says is “the music I was meant to do.” His mother always said that he was a gospel singer and now he is finally performing songs that have been, for decades, the soundtrack of African American culture and history and the backbone of the blues. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40053]
Artist Jeff Koons is renowned for his provocative and often kitschy sculptures that blend pop culture, consumerism, and art history. His works often feature oversized and glossy renditions of everyday objects, from balloon animals to household items, challenging the boundaries between high and low art while eliciting questions about mass production and cultural value. Koons talks with Kathryn Kanjo, director & CEO of the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, about his evolution as an artist, from simple inflatable rabbits to large-scale metal sculptures. [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39155]
Artist Shana Moulton’s other self, ‘Cynthia,’ seeks enlightenment through song, shopping and exercise. Performing the misadventures of her semi-autobiographical alter ego, artist Shana Moulton has drawn attention in the field of new media studies. Over two decades, Moulton, a professor of time-based arts at UC Santa Barbara, has used physical comedy to interpret her artistic creation, “Cynthia,” a wide-eyed ingénue. In Moulton's performance, video and sculpture series, "Whispering Pines" — named after the trailer park in Central California where Moulton grew up — Cynthia often sports a housecoat or spandex and seeks enlightenment through exercise and shopping. Most recently, Moulton presented an extension of “Whispering Pines” — “Meta/Physical Therapy” — at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. (While the work was on view, from Feb. 17 to April 21, 2024, the museum's overall attendance was close to half a million people.) Series: "UC Santa Barbara News" [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40207]
A fixture in the local music scene since 1974, Gene Perry was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico, and was one of the earliest pioneers of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Caribbean music in San Diego. His ensemble, Rumba Ketumba, is composed of a mixture of San Diego natives and musicians from around the world. Rumba Ketumba plays a high-energy mixture of Afro-Latin, Caribbean, Spanish Rumba, and other dance rhythms. Curator Yael Strom, whose Yiddish klezmer group has previously collaborated with Rumba Ketumba, will host and conduct a Q&A with the group after their performance. “Gene Perry and Rumba Ketumba’s extraordinary musical talent and personalities are hard for audiences to resist,” says Strom. “They have virtuosic ability with calypso, reggae, salsa, samba, Afro-Cuban, and African Diaspora music, and I have been fortunate enough to tour and collaborate with them on a number of groundbreaking cross-genre projects.” Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39527]
An electrifying harmonizer, Lisa Sanders’ heartfelt songs are genuine with deep meaning and conviction. Her music conveys a style that can only be described as soulful country blues, integrating influences of folk-pop, gospel, rock, and jazz. Writing, singing, and producing from her heart in nearly every genre for over three decades, Sanders continues to make an impact in the musical world. Joining her from the Los Angeles band, Water Tower, will be Kenny Feinstein, on guitars, mandolin, bass, and violin and Tommy Drinkard on bass, percussion, guitars, and banjo. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40051]
Dr. Sian Proctor, astronaut, geoscientist, pilot and poet, flew on the first all-private mission to Earth orbit, on SpaceX Dragon. While in orbit, she found time to observe our beautiful planet, and wrote “Earth Light,” a poem about her mesmerizing experience. The poem captures the emotional impact of orbiting Earth - of being “bathed in Earth light.” Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40254]
He is often referred to as the "God of Manga" and the "Father of Anime", Osamu Tezuka was a pioneering Japanese manga artist, animator, and film producer. His work laid the foundation for modern manga and anime, influencing countless creators and shaping the industry as it is known today. Tezuka founded Mushi Production, one of the first anime studios in Japan, where he produced the first Japanese TV anime series, Astro Boy in 1963. This show was a significant milestone in anime history, both for its success and for establishing the practice of limited animation, which became a standard in the industry. A lifelong anime aficionado, Rachel Costello, from UC San Diego’s Innovating for National Security Academic Program, gives a retrospective on the life and work for Tezuka. Her passion led her to spearhead the U.S. Navy’s “Sea Strike 2041” comic project as executive producer. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40089]
This creative program invites musicians to interact with sounds recorded from the depths of the ocean. UC San Diego music professor and Qualcomm Institute Research Artist-in-Residence Lei Liang explores his composition "Six Seasons" with Marco Fusi, a renowned string player who has performed “Six Seasons,” and Joshua Jones, a project scientist with the UC San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography lab that recorded the soundscape. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40019]
Earl Thomas was born into a musical family in rural Tennessee and grew up in a house brimming with music. His father was a bluesman and his mother was a gospel singer, so music is in his veins. He stumbled into the music industry by accident, which led to a vibrant 30-year career that is steeped in African American tradition and culture. His music is a potent mix of the traditional and contemporary gospel, expressed in an impressive music catalogue. As a singer songwriter, his music – deeply rooted in the blues and gospel – is infused with contemporary sensibilities of rock, soul, and rhythm & blues. Thomas’ latest production, after a three-year hiatus, is all vintage gospel or what the singer says is “the music I was meant to do.” His mother always said that he was a gospel singer and now he is finally performing songs that have been, for decades, the soundtrack of African American culture and history and the backbone of the blues. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40052]
An American animator, film director, and producer, Max Fleischer is best known for creating some of the most iconic animated characters and for pioneering several animation techniques that have had a lasting impact on the industry. Fleischer is responsible for creating Betty Boop, Popeye the Sailor, and Koko the Clown, and was one of the leading figures in the early days of American animation, alongside Walt Disney, and his work significantly shaped the development of the medium. While his contributions to animation were groundbreaking, but Fleischer's work was often overshadowed by Disney in later years. Rockin Pins CEO, Mauricio Alvarado is joined by animation historian Ray Pointer in a discussion on how Fleischer Cartoons are working to be restored for a new generation of animation lovers. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40088]
UC Davis is commemorating the 30th anniversary of the campus' iconic Egghead sculptures in 2024. As part of the celebration, this documentary tells the tale of the UC Davis art department — from its founding artists to the present faculty and students who follow in the founders' footsteps. The first-generation artists built their community in the ceramics building known as TB 9, or Temporary Building 9, and ignited an art revolution. Part one of the three-part series looks at the cultural upheaval pervading the U.S. in the 1970s and its influence on the art faculty and students. Stay tuned for part two about founding artist Robert Arneson's legendary legacy and his distinctive Egghead sculptures — the beloved symbols of UC Davis. Series: "UC Davis News" [Humanities] [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40182]
Born in the rhythms of Burkina Faso and cradled by the tradition of the griots, Adama Bilorou knows how to transform his heritage into a melody of multiple nuances—a musical journey that crosses continents and cultures. Drawing inspiration from the sights and sounds of his childhood in the Ivory Coast and his later journeys to Italy, France, the United States and Burkina Faso—Adama Bilorou has creatively composed his uniquely beautiful score. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40092]
CONTRA-TIEMPO Activist Dance Theater’s ¡azúcar! is a courageous naming of, confrontation with, and intentional obliteration of the often unspoken undercurrent of anti-Blackness in latinidad. Questions are continuing to drive the process as we begin to understand the complicated history of sugar and the messages from our ancestors. What does it feel like to individually and collectively heal, what does it move like? Twenty brilliant artists and collaborators take audiences through a journey of Celia Cruz’s vibrations, unearthing history embedded in our bodies. Through ¡azúcar!, CONTRA-TIEMPO explores ancestral wisdoms about a plant that once aided in our healing, used as a way to sweeten medicinal concoctions, now extracted, refined, and used as weaponized poison. This courageous work is rooted in and inspired by the sacred feminine, personal narratives of food, labor, community, sabor, and explorations of “familying” and healing as practices. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39926]
Born in the rhythms of Burkina Faso and cradled by the tradition of the griots, Adama Bilorou knows how to transform his heritage into a melody of multiple nuances—a musical journey that crosses continents and cultures. Drawing inspiration from the sights and sounds of his childhood in the Ivory Coast and his later journeys to Italy, France, the United States and Burkina Faso—Adama Bilorou has creatively composed his uniquely beautiful score. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40090]
Yale Strom’s Hot Pstromi is a U.S.-based klezmer ensemble. Much of the repertoire comes from Strom's many years of ethnographic research he has conducted in Eastern Europe. Many of the melodies and Yiddish songs come from Jews and Roma who played before and after the Holocaust and that Strom interviewed and with whom he performed. The band’s New York-based lineup includes: Peter Stan, Norbert Stachel, Elizabeth Schwartz, Sprocket and Klezmatics co-founder David Licht. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40028]
Galia Borja Gómez, Deputy Vice Governor of Banco de Mexico, discusses how the Bank of Mexico reimagined the designs of its currency to reflect Mexico's cultural and natural heritage, while also incorporating the latest technology. Borja Gómez talks with Rafael Fernández de Castro, Director of the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies at UC San Diego and a former foreign policy adviser to President Felipe Calderón on bilateral relations between Mexico and the U.S. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39521]
The Intersections Concert series is excited to present the award-winning, hip-hop soul band, The Lyrical Groove. Delivering a truly unique artistic experience that both entertains and inspires, The Lyrical Groove combines spoken word and live instrumentation, cohesively crafted of several genres of music. Producer and poet, Kendrick Dial, the multi-talented artist Brisa Lauren, and an assortment of experienced musicians join forces to create timeless music that sings life to humanity and moves the soul. A three-time San Diego Music Awards winner of Best Hip Hop/Soul Artist in 2013 and Best Hip Hop/Soul Album in 2014 and 2017, The Lyrical Groove credits their success and appeal to their artists’ community engagement. Lauren is actively involved as an organizer in political and civic advocacy efforts, and Dial is a practice coach training human service leader professionals. Together, their purpose is to create art that is both fun and meaningful Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39605]
CONTRA-TIEMPO Activist Dance Theater’s ¡azúcar! is a courageous naming of, confrontation with, and intentional obliteration of the often unspoken undercurrent of anti-Blackness in latinidad. Questions are continuing to drive the process as we begin to understand the complicated history of sugar and the messages from our ancestors. What does it feel like to individually and collectively heal, what does it move like? Twenty brilliant artists and collaborators take audiences through a journey of Celia Cruz’s vibrations, unearthing history embedded in our bodies. Through ¡azúcar!, CONTRA-TIEMPO explores ancestral wisdoms about a plant that once aided in our healing, used as a way to sweeten medicinal concoctions, now extracted, refined, and used as weaponized poison. This courageous work is rooted in and inspired by the sacred feminine, personal narratives of food, labor, community, sabor, and explorations of “familying” and healing as practices. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39923]
CONTRA-TIEMPO Activist Dance Theater’s ¡azúcar! is a courageous naming of, confrontation with, and intentional obliteration of the often unspoken undercurrent of anti-Blackness in latinidad. Questions are continuing to drive the process as we begin to understand the complicated history of sugar and the messages from our ancestors. What does it feel like to individually and collectively heal, what does it move like? Twenty brilliant artists and collaborators take audiences through a journey of Celia Cruz’s vibrations, unearthing history embedded in our bodies. Through ¡azúcar!, CONTRA-TIEMPO explores ancestral wisdoms about a plant that once aided in our healing, used as a way to sweeten medicinal concoctions, now extracted, refined, and used as weaponized poison. This courageous work is rooted in and inspired by the sacred feminine, personal narratives of food, labor, community, sabor, and explorations of “familying” and healing as practices. Series: "Arts Channel " [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 39925]