Music

Local musician Kim Taylor is on quite a roll. Her new, self-produced CD, Love’s a Dog, has just been released and the movie she co-starred in, I Used to be Darker, just appeared at the Sundance Film Festival. Somehow, she found the time to join Brian O’Donnell in the studio to talk about this whirlwind and where 2013 might take her next.

Continuing Coverage

World Choir Games
Reporter: Tana Weingartner

The next concert from The Carnegie in Covington is a walk down memory lane for local TV fans. Nancy James and Rob Reider, longtime regulars on the old Bob Braun Show, will perform together on February 28 and they are in the studio to talk with Brian O’Donnell about their memories of those days and what fans can expect to hear during Thursday’s concert.

Cincinnati composer Frank Proto recently completed a new composition, Concerto for Saxophone and Chamber Orchestra, commissioned by the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra. The world premiere performance will take place on March 3 with special guest, acclaimed saxophonist Rick VanMatre performing. Frank Johnson welcomes the composer and performer in studio as they discuss the genesis of this piece and the upcoming premiere.

A rare classical music double-header will take place at UC’s College Conservatory of Music on Saturday, March 2. Dubbed the “Mahler Marathon,” conductor Mark Gibson will lead the Philharmonia and Concert Orchestras in performances of both Mahler’s 3rd and 4th symphonies. Mahler’s 4th will be performed at 4:00 pm, and the lengthy and rarely performed 3rd will begin at 8:00 pm. Anne Arenstein discusses this challenging undertaking with Mark Gibson.

The Benjamin Carlson-Berne Memorial Scholarship was established to provide instrumental music lessons for underserved youth in the Cincinnati community. To raise funds, they will host a benefit concert on February 1 with acclaimed pianist Terrence Wilson. Susan Carlson joins Brian O’Donnell to talk about how this scholarship program came to be and details on this concert at the School for Creative and Performing Arts.

You may not recognize the name Randy Edelman, but you have absolutely heard his music. He’s had songs recorded by Barry Manilow, Kool and the Gang, Blood Sweat and Tears, and many others.

Extraordinary Coverage of a Scheduled Event
World Choir Games
Reporter: Tana Weingartner

If you haven’t made New Year’s Eve plans quite yet, consider the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s gala A Night At The Moulin Rouge. Conductor John Morris Russell and the gala chair, Hengameh Nassef, join Brian O’Donnell to provide a preview of the evening’s festivities including a concert, dinner, dancing, and a silent auction, which includes a lease of a Mercedes Benz.

When I ran into Daniel & DeShawn, they were surrounded by kids who were dancing and playing various musical instruments and just having a great time at Findlay Market. 

I spoke with them about interacting in the community through the medium of music, what they do when the weather gets colder and what other difficulties face street musicians in the city.

James Davis is most often found performing on the corner of 9th and Main downtown, many times with his nephew.  When I met with him, he spoke openly about the challenges that face street musicians in Cincinnati and around the country.

James also sells StreetVibes, a locally-produced newspaper that advocates for the homeless.

Bonita Price was a music major at The Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) and Central State University but took some time off to raise her family.  She is now a practicing street musician to hone her voice and to provide income since she was laid off from the Jim Beam distillery when it closed its Cincinnati plant in 2011.

I caught up with Bonita at Cincinnati’s Findlay Market - Ohio's oldest continuously-operated public market.