The attached photo from Bye, Bye Birdie, dated c. 1960 was recently spotted by Musicology Chair Raymond Knapp. His sharp eyes identified the guitarist as our very own Ethnomusicology Professor and head of Jazz Studies, Kenny Burrell.

JUDY NIEMACK
ANNOUNCING
” FREE TO IMPROVISE: Exploring essential elements for improvisation”
This is a hands-on workshop by international jazz star Judy Niemack for all classical and jazz vocalists and instrumentalists, staff, faculty, and interested others. This class is geared to free up the creative flow in anyone who hopes to perform music requiring improvisation, including jazz […]

Last summer I went to Sophia, Bulgaria, for a performance of my Symphony Istanbul Tales by the Sophia Philharmonic.
Symphony Istanbul Tales is very personal to me. The themes that comprise the work were first composed during my days as a student at a European-Turkish style conservatory in my native city of Istanbul. I started […]

Marti Attoun interviewed UCLA Ethnomusicology associate professor Tara Browner in the October 7, 2007 online edition of AmericanProfile.com. In it, she gives us a history of the powwow.

Tara Browner
What’s a Powwow?
American Indians have held ceremonial gatherings since ancient times, but intertribal powwows—in which members of several tribes convene to socialize and exchange cultural traditions—are a […]

Here is an excerpt of Prof A.J. Racy playing “Holy Lotus” from his 1993 album ANCIENT EGYPT: A TRIBUTE.

This musical tribute to ancient Egypt was originally composed in 1978 for the King Tutankhamun exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum. It was inspired by the artistry of the ancient treasures and the religious […]

Welcome Münir Beken! Professor Beken joins the Department of Ethnomusicology this fall. His expertise includes composition, world music theory, phenomenology of music, and the melodic modal systems of the Middle East and Central Asia.

Münir Beken’s career spans theory, composition, ethnomusicology, and performance. As a composer, he has written a state-commissioned ballet suite for orchestra, won […]