Temple University’s Music Preparatory Division, or “Temple Music Prep” for short, is a program located in the heart of center city, Philadelphia, that provides high quality, non-credit music and dance instruction, and related activities to the Community on behalf of the Boyer College of Music and Dance, and Temple University at-large. World-renowne…

Jeff Russo was one of the two founding members of the rock band “Tonic”, perhaps best known for their number one hit in the 90s, “If You Could Only See”. Nowadays, Jeff is in demand as a TV and film composer, having scored music for hit shows like “Fargo”, “American Gothic”, and can currently be heard on the new FX Marvel series, “Legion”. Welcome …

David Hart is the developer of the G4 Guitar Method, a method based on his two decades of teaching and opening schools throughout Australia. David’s G4 method not only teaches students the 7 essential skills of guitar playing - it also teaches teachers how to become entrepreneurs and open their own schools, as evidenced by the 50 franchises of the …

Carol Jantsch became the first female tuba player to win a major symphony orchestra position while she was still a senior attending the University of Michigan back in 2006. In addition to her duties as principal tuba of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Carol has been active as a tuba soloist, appearing in recital and in concerto settings with orchestras…

Sara Davis Buechner has been hailed by The New York Times for her “intelligence, integrity and all-encompassing technical prowess”. As one of the leading keyboard artists of our time, Sara has an active repertoire of over 100 piano concertos and has appeared with prominent orchestras all over the world. Sara was recently appointed to the piano facu…

Sam Rao is a multi-discipline musician, entrepreneur, and developer of Practicia, an innovative app platform that helps students and teachers make practicing more fun and productive. As a musician, Sam studied composition and conducting at Oberlin Conservatory and the Aspen Festival. As an entrepreneur, he co-founded his own music school which grew…

Roger Ideishi is the Director of Occupational Therapy at Temple University in Philadelphia. He has worked to provide community access and opportunities for children with diverse sensory and cognitive abilities. Roger has worked with such arts organizations as the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Philadelphia Ball…

Eleanor Sokoloff has been teaching piano at The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia since 1936. At the ripe young age of 102, she shows no sign of slowing down. Some of her most esteemed students have included the likes of Keith Jarrett, Lambert Orkis, Susan Starr, Leon McCawley, Meng-Chieh Liu, and countless others. This year, Eleanor Sokolo…

Steven Hackman is one of the most exciting hybrid classical and pop artists on the scene today. Steve has worked extensively with the hit classical crossover group, Time for Three, writing several of their unique arrangements, and is currently the Creative Director of FUSE at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Music Director of the 'Mash-Up' series…

Chad Seiter has composed and produced original music for several major Hollywood franchises such as Star Trek, Fringe, and Lost. He is also Composer, Music Director and Associate Executive Producer for Pokémon: Symphonic Evolutions and The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses touring concert series performing symphonic arrangements of classic…

At the age of 12, Mimi Stillman was the youngest wind player ever to be accepted for studies at The Curtis Institute of Music with the legendary flutist Julius Baker. Now, Mimi is not only a world renowned flute soloist, but she is also the founder and artistic director of the Dolce Suono chamber music ensemble, as well as an author, arranger, teac…

Joseph Conyers is a remarkable musician, educator, and civic leader. In 2007, Ebony magazine named him one of ‘30 Leaders 30 and under’. In addition to his position in the Philadelphia Orchestra, Joe is the Music Director for the School District of Philadelphia's All City music program, and founder of Project 440, an organization that provides high…

For 40 years, Tom Di Nardo has covered the Philadelphia arts scene through his articles in the Bulletin and the Philadelphia Daily News. Tom recently published two new books: “Listening To Musicians”, a compilation of interviews and reflections on the conductors, musicians and artists associated with The Philadelphia Orchestra, and “Performers Tell…

Alan Morrison is recognized as one of America's premier concert organists, performing in prestigious concert organ venues across the United States and in Canada, as well as in international festivals. Alan is currently the head of the organ department at The Curtis Institute of Music, and is a faculty member of Westminster Choir College and College…

Frederic Chiu is one of those renaissance polymath pianists for whom music is a prism for exploring life in its totality. From recording the entire oeuvre of Prokofiev’s piano literature to exploring the relationships between disparate cultures, interests in computer science and artificial intelligence, and even using the principles of cooking to e…

Pianists with small hands have to overcome considerable physical challenges in order to be able to play great literature for the piano. Oftentimes those challenges lead to muscle strain and even career-ending injuries. To address the unique needs of smaller hands, engineer and business owner David Steinbuhler collaborated with pianist Christopher D…

Kayhan Kalhor is one of the greatest living masters of the Kamancheh, a 3 or 4 stringed Persian spiked fiddle and ancient predecessor to the modern cello. Kayhan performs around the world extensively as a soloist and collaborator with a wide variety of musicians, including Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road ensemble. The kamancheh is an incredibly soulful,…

Hector Olivera was a child prodigy on the organ, having performed for the likes of Eva Perón, the first lady of Argentina, when he was only five. Hector has since become an international sensation, performing on all the great cathedral organs around the world, as well as embracing the possibilities of digital organs with his stunning live performan…

Seymour Lipkin was an esteemed faculty member of the Juilliard School and The Curtis Institute of Music. His understated persona coupled with a towering intellect resulted in a passionate fidelity to the composer’s intent on the score, as can be heard in his complete recordings of the Beethoven and Schubert piano sonatas. A longtime director of the…

History is full of stories of great musicians with financial struggles - Beethoven, Schubert, even Mozart was said to have been buried in a pauper’s grave. The image of the “starving artist” tries to glorify the idea that great musicians are supposed to sacrifice everything in pursuit of their art and not expect any commercial gain, much less “stai…

Sean Perrin is the host of "Clarineat", a popular podcast show dedicated to all things related to the clarinet. Sean's debut CD, “Dreamsongs”, hit the top of the Canadian Jazz charts when it was released, and features a unique mix of arrangements of Chick Corea and Phillip Glass songs performed on clarinet, marimba and vibraphone. If you’re a music…

Andrew Hitz was a 14 year member of the Boston Brass before leaving to become an musical entrepreneur, podcast host, and co-founder of Pedal Note Media, a digital media company providing products and programs to educate, entertain and inspire music teachers, players and fans. We’re continuing our month-long series on music podcasters and entreprene…

Seth Hanes is a musician, digital marketing consultant, speaker, and founder of musiciansguidetohustling.com, As a digital marketing consultant, Seth has worked with multi-million dollar organizations, book publishers, and musicians from ensembles like the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. His new book, “Break Into The Scene”, i…

Jason Heath is a freelance double bass player who started his Contrabass Conversations podcast way back in 2007, nearly 10 years ago. Now with well over a million downloads, Jason’s incredibly popular podcast is the Internet’s most comprehensive resource on all people and topics related to life and music around the double bass. This month, we’re go…

Invertigo Dance Theatre was recently named by Dance Spirit Magazine as one of the “top six trend-setting companies to watch in LA.” Founded by choreographer Laura Karlin, Invertigo uses dance to tell compelling stories and create deep connections with communities. One of the most fascinating aspects of Invertigo is that they perform with live music…

Film and television composer Gary Lionelli created the music for ESPN’s critically acclaimed five-part miniseries “O.J.: Made in America,” directed by Ezra Edelman. In addition, he has provided music for Rory Kennedy's 2015 Academy Award nominated film "Last Days in Vietnam" and HBO's dramatic series "LUCK," starring Dustin Hoffman. Most television…

Anthony McGill is one of the greatest clarinetists in the classical music field today. He’s been the Associate Principal Clarinet of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Principal Clarinet of the Metropolitan Orchestra, and currently serves as Principal Clarinet of the New York Philharmonic. Several months ago, Anthony’s older brother, Demarre Mc…

Welcome to A Musical Life. I'm Hugh Sung, host and executive producer of the show. Due to my teaching and performance schedule this summer, we'll be taking a short summer hiatus. But don't worry! We'll be back in just a few weeks. To be notified as soon as the episodes resume, visit https://www.amusicallife.com to sign up for our newsletter. Thank …

“Clair de lune” by late 19th and early 20th century French composer Claude Debussy is one of the world’s most beloved pieces written for the piano. In this special episode of “A Musical Life”, I’ve invited award-winning pianist, composer, and Peabody Conservatory graduate Jennifer Nicole Campbell to share her insights into what makes “Clair de lune…

Norman Lebrecht is one of the foremost cultural writers and classical music reviewers today. In addition to his columns for The Daily Telegraph and The Standpoint, he’s been a host on BBC 3 Radio, and his first novel, “The Song of Names”, is in the process of being adapted into a major motion picture. Norman has written extensively on the business …

Pieter Schlosser is an award-winning film, television and video game composer known for his work on NBC's hit show You, Me And The Apocalypse, as well as his collaborations with Steve Jablonsky on Desperate Housewives, the Transformers film, and Gears of War 2 & 3 video games. As a multi-cultural multi-instrumentalist, Pieter draws on an incredible…

Violinist, scholar, composer, philanthropist, and heavy metal shredder Rachel Barton Pine is a one-of-a kind musical tour de force, connecting a wide array of cultures, genres, and communities. Despite tremendous childhood difficulties and a major setback early in her career, Rachel drew upon a profound spiritual resource to become one of today’s l…

Jason Graves is a BAFTA award-winning composer behind some of the most popular video games such as the Dead Space series, the 2013 reboot of Tomb Raider, and more recently Far Cry Primal, which was just published by Ubisoft earlier this year. Jason combines modern classical composition techniques with innovative sound designs to create scores that …

World renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma established Silkroad in 1998 to explore how music can advance global understanding. Since 2000, the musicians of the world music collective, Silk Road Ensemble, have been on a mission to change the world by connecting diverse cultures and traditions in performances, workshops, and residencies. Yo-Yo Ma and the Grammy…

Music critic and composer Greg Sandow has written extensively on the future of classical music. As a critic, Greg covered new classical music in The Village Voice and was senior music editor for Entertainment Weekly. As a thought leader, Greg works on defining the problems in classical music and finding innovative solutions for them. What if orches…

Composer Peter Schickele has written over 100 works for a wide variety of orchestral, chamber, and vocal ensembles and genres, as well as scores for film and television. As the world’s leading - ah, make that, only - authority on P.D.Q. Bach, the oddest of J.S. Bach’s 20-odd children, Professor Shickele has for the past 50 years unwittingly lampoon…

Rendra Zawawi co-wrote and co-produced, “Arena Chahaya”, the theme song for the 2016 Malaysian soccer movie, “Ola Bola”, sung by Zee Avi. As a Magna Cum Laude graduate of the Berklee School of Music, Rendra brings an astonishing diversity of styles to his music and career. We’re continuing our series on Musical Entrepreneurs. As I mentioned in the …

Brandon Pearce is the founder of Music Teacher’s Helper, a website that does just that - it helps music teachers organize, schedule and receive payments for music lessons, and so much more. From the proceeds of his company, Brandon lives a remarkable life, traveling around the world full time with his family, free of material possessions and with t…

Tim Topham is a prolific bloggerand host of the Tim Topham TV piano teaching podcast, a resourcefor piano teachers looking for creative ways to teach and engagetheir students. Tim’s writing and training courses have beenfeatured in several music journals and publications, and heregularly speaks at local and international musicconferences. Tim and I…

Kerry Muzzey is the composer for “The Seer”, a new documentary by director Laura Dunn and executive producers Robert Redford and Terrence Malick that just premiered at the 2016 SXSW film festival. Kerry’s music has also been heard on TV shows like “Glee”. His 2014 album, “The Architect”, debuted at #5 on both the Billboard Classical and Contemporar…

Singer/songwriter Dave Tamkin hails from Chicago and currently lives in Boulder, CO. His music can be described as “rhythmic acoustic rock” and features lyrics that capture a passionate sincerity and poetic exploration of modern life. As an expert on Internet marketing, Dave helps musicians and music companies - like AirTurn - share their message t…

Time for Three is made up of Violinists Nick Kendall and Nikki Chooi and Double Bassist Ranaan Meyer, and can probably be best described as a “classically trained garage band”. With an exciting mix of originals, covers and classical music with a capital 'T' “Twist”, these guys have electrified audiences around the world and were recently featured o…

Jasmine Choi has been hailed by Sinfini magazine as “one of the 10 greatest flutists in history”. As the last student of the legendary flutist Julius Baker, Jasmine is known for her gorgeous tone, dazzling technique, and boundless creativity. I’ve known Jasmine Choi ever since she was a student at The Curtis Institute of Music, studying under the l…

Crystal Mangano is the composer for “Asperger’s Are Us”, a new documentary that follows the story of the first comedy troupe made up of people with Asperger’s syndrome. What makes Crystal’s education unique is the fact that she actually double majored in both film and composition, giving her a deep perspective when it comes to providing music to fi…

Sage Lewis is a composer who uses his music to explore multiple relationships between electronic and acoustic sounds, virtual and physical reality, as well as cultural divides and bridges. Sage is the composer for the new film, “Operator”, as well as the groundbreaking virtual reality piece “The Surrogate”, both of which just premiered at the 2016 …

If you’ve seen an episode of the hit BBC detective show “Luther” starring Idris Elba, then you’ve heard the powerful music of Paul Englishby. Paul is also the composer for “The Musketeers”, another hit BBC television series, and has written music for several productions of the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as for such movies as “Miss Pettigrew…

What do you wear to a symphony concert? When do you clap? And why is the timpani player smelling his drums? If you’ve never been to a classical music concert, it can be a bit intimidating the very first time you go to one. There seems to be a whole world of etiquette and protocol that can make the experience seem - well, aloof and elitist, at least…

Demarre McGill is one of the leading young American flutists of our time. Winner of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, Demarre has been a sought after soloist and chamber musician. He is also the co-founder of The Art of Élan, an innovative chamber music organization in San Diego that introduces new audiences to classical music in unique venues and pro…

What if you could design the perfect summer music camp? Sandy Marcucci wanted to do just that for her daughter studying the violin with Kim Fisher from the Philadelphia Orchestra, so she started literally in her own backyard. Now, 20 years later, the Philadelphia International Music Festival has become a major destination for hundreds of students a…

Vera Wilson is the founder and president of Astral, an arts organization in Philadelphia that has helped to launch the careers of classical music superstars such as pianist Simone Dinnerstein, Grammy award-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux, and the classical crossover group Time for Three. For young classical musicians, the path from conservatory to c…