“What we’re listening to” with Michael Mohammed: Twists & Turns

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This month’s Spotify playlist called “Twists and Turns” is curated by Michael Mohammed, voice faculty member. As he says about the playlist, “It’s all vocalists, of all different stripes. It’s a little bit of singers behaving badly…legit singers stepping outside their genres…and pop singers who might be sounding a little more legit. I think there’s a lot surprises on this list.”

50 Years of Iconic Latin Music with Oscar Hernández

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Over the course of a nearly fifty year music career, Oscar Hernández has played with some of the most iconic and well-known artists in the New York City Latin music scene. As he said, “New York was in the middle of the Latino cultural revolution and music was a huge part of that— the music of Machito, Tito Rodríguez, Tito Puente, Héctor Lavoe, Willie Colón, Ray Barretto, Eddie Palmieri, on and on, so many artists that were part of that era influenced the rest of the world with regard to Latin music.” And Hernández played with them all. 

Musical Exploration with Rachel Condry this Fall

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We’ve all tested out something new during shelter-in-place—from sourdough starters, thousand-piece puzzles, home haircuts, or a new workout routine. But how do we stay musically adventurous during these times? Beginning in Fall Quarter Rachel Condry (Clarinet, Chamber Music) will be offering three exciting new classes for both youth and adults to connect to new styles […]

“What we’re listening to” with Heidi Kim

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“What we’re listening to” is a series of Spotify playlists curated by CMC faculty. This month’s Spotify playlist is curated by Heidi Kim, violin and viola faculty. As she says about the song selection, “This playlist is getting me through COVID-19.” She also has a few other things to say about the song choices, how […]

CMC launches the MusicLab Workshop Series

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CMC is teaming up with the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble and MisterLatinJazz to launch a fall series of monthly music workshops. The MusicLab Workshop series will bring master Latin jazz artists from around the country to share their wealth of knowledge in an interactive setting. These 90 minute workshops give the participants an opportunity to learn, listen, discuss, and practice in real time in an online class experience. 

El Son de la Misión” se transmitirá para ayudar a recaudar fondos para alivio alimentario para familias del Distrito de la Misión

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CMC is teaming up with Carnaval San Francisco to live-stream CMC’s 2016 production of “El Son de la Misión: A Musical Journey from 1960–Present” in a multi-day fundraising event El Son de la Misión” – Juntos Contra el Hambre (Fighting Hunger Together) to raise funds for the Mission Food Hub, which provides food for 7,000 families weekly. This two-part streaming event will be held on August 3 (part one) and August 10 (part two) at 5:00 pm on the hub’s fundraising page with a virtual telethon. The streaming is happening in conjunction with CMC’s Encore! Summer Concert Series which broadcasts an encore concert from the CMC Concert Hall archives weekly from July 20–September 6.

Exciting and new classes

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  CMC classes and lessons are looking spectacular for fall with new offerings coming down the pipeline! CMC faculty are using their creativity and know-how to bring online learning to life. Visit the website to learn more about the innovative ways CMC faculty are creating an engaging online music community for youth and adults. The […]

Wishing Linda Hitchcock and María Cora “Bon Voyage!”

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At the end of June, CMC saw the retirement of two revered staff members, Linda Hitchcock and María Cora. During Linda Hitchcock’s 24 years at CMC, she worked as the Children’s Chorus Manager, Development Assistant, Grant Writer, and most recently, as the Concert Hall Manager and Associate Registrar. Linda’s tenure at CMC saw three different […]

“El Son de la Misión” will stream to raise money for food relief for Mission District families

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CMC is teaming up with Carnaval San Francisco to live-stream CMC’s 2016 production of “El Son de la Misión: A Musical Journey from 1960–Present” in a multi-day fundraising event El Son de la Misión” – Juntos Contra el Hambre (Fighting Hunger Together) to raise funds for the Mission Food Hub, which provides food for 7,000 families weekly. This two-part streaming event will be held on August 3 (part one) and August 10 (part two) at 5:00 pm on the hub’s fundraising page with a virtual telethon. The streaming is happening in conjunction with CMC’s Encore! Summer Concert Series which broadcasts an encore concert from the CMC Concert Hall archives weekly from July 20–September 6.

Bridging the technological divide for older adult choir members

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Even as the Older Adult Choir Program has moved online with practice videos and Zoom sessions, there are limitations for some of the members. Those who don’t have devices to access Zoom and online videos or access to the internet are not able to participate in the choirs. Especially during the pandemic, when isolation is more prevalent, making the choirs accessible to everyone is of primary concern for María Cora, Older Adult Choir Program Coordinator. She has been working with the Community Tech Network (CTN) and its Home Connect program to address some of the technology challenges CMC’s choir program is facing. She surveyed the Older Adult Choir conductors to nominate members who need devices and training. In working with Home Connect an additional impediment was soon discovered. Many of the nominated older adults speak Spanish or Tagalog primarily and the Home Connect program, which is currently in a pilot phase, is still developing capacity to provide support to clients for whom English is not their primary language. In working with CTN, Cora is hopeful. This past week she learned from Stephen Minor, CTN Senior Program Manager, that the Home Connect Program has more capacity for working with Spanish-speakers through volunteer recruitment. Cora is also helping to connect CTN with someone from the Tagalog community to translate their learning materials.