Beth Wood

1 month ago | sandiegouniontribune.com | Beth Wood

Those in higher education hope that their students display growth, from the first year of college to the last phase of earning a doctorate. But cellist Peter Ko, who started at UC San Diego in 2019, has exceeded his mentor’s expectations. “Compared to our first meeting, it’s a sea change,” said UCSD music professor Charles Curtis, who is Ko’s longtime advisor. “There’s been a paradigm shift.

1 month ago | sandiegouniontribune.com | Beth Wood

Spring is coming to San Diego and so are many promising concerts. In addition to the group of dynamic events below, we can anticipate La Jolla Music Society’s three-week-long SummerFest, starting in July. Here are some of the top sonic delights coming up this spring and summer. Camarada: LusciousCamarada celebrates its 30th anniversary season by performing some of its favorite composers, including Gilad Cohen, George Gershwin and Claude Debussy.

1 month ago | sandiegouniontribune.com | Beth Wood

Why did violinist Blake Pouliot’s parents keep him from learning the instrument when he was 5? “They thought I was too busy!” he recalled with a laugh. Too busy at age 5? “I was a super enthusiastic kid!” explained Pouliot, 31, speaking from his home in Brooklyn, New York. “I was playing hockey, doing gymnastics, playing piano. I loved sports and being social. “So, my parents were like: ‘You’re already doing all this.

2 months ago | sandiegouniontribune.com | Beth Wood

Just as Mainly Mozart is busy preparing its 2025 All-Star Orchestra Festival this summer, the San Diego nonprofit, founded in 1988, is also being recognized globally. Late last month, the prestigious International Mozarteum Foundation accepted Mainly Mozart into its “Mozart Communities,” a group of around 30 leading classical-music organizations worldwide. They work together to maintain and disseminate the legendary composer’s musical legacy.

Jan 19, 2025 | sandiegouniontribune.com | Beth Wood

Debut performances are always exciting, especially when it’s a double debut of two well-known European musicians making new inroads in the U.S. But for next weekend’s San Diego Symphony concerts introducing violinist Francesca Dego and Italian conductor Daniele Rustioni to the region, it’s both a debut and a return. “My grandmother lived in San Diego for many years, and I was there between the ages of 5 and 7,” explained Italian-born Dego, whose mother is American.