Skol!
By Richard Mineards   |   May 23, 2023

It was anything but glacial when Icelandic pianist Vikingur Olafsson perfumed a 95-minute Mozart and Contemporaries concert at the Music Academy’s Hahn Hall. The hugely entertaining show shed light on lesser-known musical figures, including Italian composers Domenico Cimarosa and Baldassare Galuppi, and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, the fifth child and second son of Johann Sebastian […]

Excellent chamber music with the Elite Eight
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 9, 2023

Three long years after the original plan, the Lobero Theatre Chamber Music Project is finally getting the chance to perform its first series of concerts in a full-fledged festival format, launching what is sure to be one of the classical music highlights of the year. The project grew out of the ashes of the Santa […]

 

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Sounds Around Town: Bowlful of Music
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 9, 2023

The Black Keys saunter onto the Santa Barbara Bowl stage on the heels of their latest album, 2022’s Dropout Boogie. The garage rock/raw blues duo, with singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney, was founded in Akron, Ohio, more than two decades ago. They saw their commercial breakthrough with the studio album and hit single […]

Comedy is King 
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 9, 2023

Please bear with us as we share about the multi-date month of funny shows during the merry month of May from Bear Cave Comedy, the folks who feature titanically talented comics on the tiniest stages. Samantha Bearman, aka Sam Bear, hosts the Not So Secret Comedy show on May 4 at McConnell’s Ice Cream’s downtown […]

Kings Onstage
By Richard Mineards   |   May 9, 2023

Granada chairman Palmer Jackson, who regularly plays guitar with the local band the Doublewide Kings, couldn’t resist the urge to perform when the Alpha Rhythm Kings from the Bay Area performed in the cavernous auditorium for Onstage at the G, the second of a three-part series sponsored by Roger and Sarah Chrisman, and Kyle and […]

Santa Barbara Symphony
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 3, 2023

The programming for the Santa Barbara Symphony’s milestone 70th anniversary has resulted in a sensational and supremely successful season, a nine-month musical journey that has weaved together a variety of collaborative explored genres and cultural traditions. Concerts have cut a wide swath across and beyond what is traditionally considered classical music, including such uniquely Santa […]

12th Annual NAMM Report Part 2: AI tech & traditional music gear
By Joanne A Calitri   |   May 2, 2023

First stop, the Innovation Lounge for AI with an immersive speaker system by Genelec and hosted by GPU Audio. I went to the Neural Synthesis machine learning (ML) music-making demo by CJ Carr, head of audio research at Harmonai and band member of DADABOTS. He did live ML sampling, and to make it real he […]

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  • For the Love of Beethoven
    By Steven Libowitz   |   May 2, 2023

    Love & Justice: In the Footsteps of Beethoven’s Rebel Opera – is the second film in Lompoc native and former Santa Barbara resident Kerry Candaele’s Beethoven trilogy, and an effort we may safely describe as a case of art imitating life imitating art. Candaele, who taught for years at Cate School, spent the last decade […]

    SBS Sneak Peak
    By Richard Mineards   |   April 25, 2023

    Santa Barbara Symphony’s 2023-24 season promises to be an absolute cracker! Veteran maestro Nir Kabaretti has enlisted a record-breaking 23 guest artists, including eight vocal soloists, four choral groups, two trios, and a guest conductor to perform at the venerable Granada. “They cost a lot, but enrich the community,” he told VIP donors at a […]

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    Barbareño Hosts a Cross-sensory Concert and Dinner Experience
    By Zach Rosen   |   April 18, 2023

    Barbareño has already proven themselves on the plate – crafting dishes that blend central coast tradition with colorful flavors and engaging plating. Their ingredient choices highlight the abundance of the area while emphasizing the locale in which they are served that seemingly captures the laid-back yet sophisticated style of Santa Barbara. But the upcoming event, […]

    Making More Music with Marley’s Ghost
    By Steven Libowitz   |   April 18, 2023

    After a bunch of years, most bands either turn into a shell of what they used to be or fade away entirely. But unlike the famed Dickens character they were named for, Marley’s Ghost has both deepened its roots-Americana-pop approach and expanded its vocabulary over the decades. That’s the sort of thing that a while […]

    An Evening with Wynton
    By Richard Mineards   |   April 18, 2023

    World renowned trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, bandleader and composer, who I’ve seen many times on the Granada stage courtesy of UCSB Arts & Lectures, was back at the historic venue after a tour of Asia with the Wynton Marsalis Septet. Marsalis, 61, artistic director of Jazz at the Lincoln Center and director of Jazz Studies at […]

    Motown Magic
    By Richard Mineards   |   April 11, 2023

    The audience at the Lobero was transported back to the Swinging ‘60s when Los Angeles-based tribute band The Magical Music of Motown returned to the historic venue after appearing in our Eden by the Beach last May. The vibrant and colorful two-hour show paid homage to the legendary Detroit-based record label. Founded by now 93-year-old […]

    Colin Hay: Song Man Still at Work 
    By Steven Libowitz   |   April 4, 2023

    Colin Hay has had a lot of time to adjust to life as a former rock star; about seven times as many years as Men at Work actually existed as a recording act. The lead singer and co-songwriter of the Aussie band was as surprised as anyone when the quintet rose to the top of […]

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