Thriller, the Eve Ball and our students
I should have known something was up when I got an email that said, “Chancellor Thorp, we were hoping you could join us for a few minutes in The Pit to build awareness for the Eve Ball.” Sure, I said....
View ArticleMalawi report: mixing medicine and music
This afternoon we landed in Lilongwe, Malawi. The flight from Johannesburg was about 2 hours. After checking into Wendels Guest House, where we had a decent internet connection (and the Sunday NY...
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Listening in Lilongwe: music to my ears
What a day in Lilongwe. We started at the Bwaila antenatal clinic. This is where UNC led a famous study called BAN, which determined the best course for treating HIV-positive mothers to prevent...
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Magnificent, joyful music
As I stated a few posts ago, I had the opportunity to sit in with a band in Malawi at the goat roast. The bandleader is named James Msalakwa and the band was named Jirere. You can see the band name on...
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Oh, say can you see in 3/4 time and a gospel feel
Since the Super Bowl, there’s been a lot of talk about the national anthem. It’s not an easy song to do. The lyrics to the first two A sections are pretty similar (this is what tripped up Christina...
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A portrait of James Moeser and his Carolina legacy
On Friday, we unveiled the portrait of Chancellor James Moeser that will hang in the lobby of Wilson Library along with portraits of his eight predecessors. The portrait is a wonderful likeness of...
View Article“In the Heat of the Night”
Last week, when we honored Carolina alumnus Alan Bergman at University Day, the music department held a gala concert where the students performed Bergman’s songs. Alan’s collaborator and wife Marilyn...
View ArticleA lyrical marriage: conversation with the Bergmans
In addition to playing one of their songs at the gala concert (see earlier post), I also had the chance to talk to Alan and Marilyn Bergman in the studio about their careers and their advice for...
View ArticleEcon 125: Session Musicians and Entrepreneurship
In our pop and jazz musical selections, we have been talking a lot about the importance of session musicians to pop music and how they knit together pop music history. The difference between a great...
View ArticleThe Conversation: John Kao on innovation, jazz and wicked problems
Thanks to the generosity of David and Judy Frey, John Kao was in town to talk about innovation as a Frey Distinguished Visiting Professor. Before his public talk, he came to the studio to talk to me...
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