News Items
Celebrating Lukas Foss at 100
August 16, 2022
Lukas Foss (1922–2009) was a bit of an iconoclast as a composer. He was so interested in the new that he never hewed too closely to any one creative school, and was too experimental to cultivate an identifiable style.
Celebrating Leo Kraft’s 100th: New Oral History and Spotify Playlist
July 21, 2022
Though not a household name, composer Leo Kraft (1922–2014) was a significant force on New York’s new music scene from the mid-20th century to well into the 21st.
Introducing the Milken Archive Data Dashboard
June 13, 2022
What does Jewish music look like? It’s not the most obvious question. But for the past two years, we have been collaborating on a research project on recorded Jewish music with our partners at the Lowell Milken Center for Music of American Jewish Experience at UCLA.
Musical Echoes of Ukraine in the American Jewish Experience
May 05, 2022
Leonard Bernstein’s Kaddish Symphony is arguably his most important concert work and most profound musical expression of his crisis of faith. But its linchpin is actually a variation on Hasidic legend from Ukraine in which a rebbe confronts God for failing to protect the Jewish people.
Welcoming the Stranger This Passover - With Generosity and Music (and Tovah!)
March 30, 2022
The theme of “welcoming the stranger” is central in the observance and celebration of Passover.
William Schuman’s “Judith”: How a Ballet Score Helped Save an Orchestra
February 16, 2022
Like many of his contemporaries, composer William Schuman harbored a love for American jazz and popular music. In fact, before pursuing composition studies in his twenties, it is estimated that he wrote nearly 150 popular songs.
The Malavsky Sisters: In Their Own Words
January 11, 2022
Cantor Samuel Malavsky was born in Russia in 1894. Like so many cantors of his generation, he learned the cantorial trade as a meshorer, or chorister. When he came to the U. S.
NOW PLAYING: The greats of Jewish music, in their own words
December 15, 2021
One of the founding goals of the Milken Archive was to document and preserve the music of the American Jewish Experience. As part of that, over 800 hours of oral history video interviews were recorded with some of the greatest artists of the 20th century.
Music, Menorahs & More Hanukkah Giveaway
November 11, 2021
It's hard to believe that Hannukah is only two weeks (and one Thanksgiving weekend) away! As the days get shorter here in North America, it's the perfect holiday to bring light back into our lives—literally and metaphorically—with family, candles and, of course, music.
A New Virtual Exhibit from Ofer Ben-Amots
October 28, 2021
Dear Milken Archive Visitor, When Milken Archive Curator Jeff Janeczko approached me with an offer to curate a virtual exhibit for the Milken Archive, I felt both pleased and terrified.
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