Music

Danette Goulet SCHOOL'S OUT is a weekly feature in which Daily Pilot education writer Danette Goulet visits a summer camp within the Newport-Mesa area and writes about her experience. Clutching colorful sheer scarves, toddlers flit around the bright music room like a swarm of pastel butterflies. It was the first day of a weeklong camp at the Pacific School for Music and the Arts in Costa Mesa. The camp is designed to introduce young children to the arts.

B.W. COOK The Upper Bay committee of the Philharmonic Society of Orange County hosted a fashionable gathering at the Balboa Bay Club & Resort. The longest-running supportive committee of the society, founded in 1957, attracted a full house of ladies in spring finery and a few cooperative gents to celebrate an 18th annual meeting of the minds in support of music in Orange County. These dedicated people began their fundraising nearly 50 years ago by baking and selling cookies to raise funds in support of youth music programs.

Feeling inspired at work, musician Dan Krikorian jotted down his ideas on little yellow sticky notes to save for later when he could work on his music. Yellow sticky note after yellow sticky note later, Krikorian had his second album, “Colors and Chords,” and a whole lot of yellow notes. “I actually have a huge box of sticky notes that I wrote my album on,” Krikorian said. The Costa Mesa man is preparing for the release of his second album and getting ready for his first West Coast tour.

Glenn Miller's Big Band music filled the home of my childhood. My dad, Don Haynes, was Glenn's best friend and business manager. My mom, Polly Davis, had been Glenn's executive secretary. Glenn's widow, Helen, and their children, Jonnie and Steve, were among our closest friends. I learned to dance with my mom to Miller's tunes, and Frances' and my first dance as wife and husband was to "Moonlight Serenade," co-written by Glenn and Chummy MacGregor, the band's pianist and my honorary "Uncle Mac."

When "Snakes on a Plane" representatives called the All-American Rejects to see if they wanted to add a song to the upcoming Samuel L. Jackson movie's soundtrack, they didn't need to think about it much. "We were stoked. We were like, 'Yeah! A Samuel Jackson movie.' And the logo looked amazing ? these two snakes all wrapped around the plane," said Chris Gaylor, the band's drummer. "We were like, 'OK. This has to be done.'" Even better, it gave them an opportunity to remix and fine-tune their song "Can't Take It," which was not as polished as others on their album, Gaylor said.

Alex Coolman Ricky Martin got it wrong. The immensely popular Puerto Rican musician's song "La Vida Loca" has been virtually the anthem of summer -- a piece of music, blasted out of car speakers and across nightclub floors, whose rhythms seem to assert the fact that today's existence, at least for Latinos, is "the crazy life." But in Costa Mesa's Latino community, a very different rhythm can be heard. It is not that of a life out of control but of day-to-day existence in a community still very much concerned with preserving its own traditions and values.

Christine Carrillo After receiving a proclamation from the mayor and a nod from California's governor, the music department at Newport Harbor High School now has its sights set on the White House. Seventy-two music students at Newport Harbor will head to Washington, D.C. over the Memorial Day weekend to perform at nearby Annapolis and maybe even tour the White House, something that's nearly impossible to do these days. Within the next few weeks, a repertoire will be prepared and practice will begin.

Young Chang Whether you're looking to dance among sweaty people who don't care about how loud the music is because the last thing they want to do is talk, or sway just the slightest bit in a mellow lounge where people prefer to sip drinks and watch, Newport-Mesa offers plenty of opportunities to groove. Sometimes you really have to look, as the venues look like mere restaurants but cater to a dancing mood. Other times, you can just listen for the loud music and know there is dancing to be had. The Tiki Bar in Costa Mesa is an obvious place for dance.

Deepa Bharath "R-E-A-D. Let's all read a book today." Children at Victoria Elementary School were singing the refrain long after the music and fun-filled show of Readapalooza Too had ended. The group, funded by a state grant as part of Gov. Gray Davis' READ California program, is on an eight-week tour of California's elementary schools and made a brief stop in Costa Mesa on Tuesday to encourage children to read through an interactive 20-minute live stage show that included music, games and humor.

TODAY 1Oscar winner. The singer with the Stradivarius voice, Maureen McGovern, makes her debut at Founder's Hall at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $49. The Center is at 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. For more information, call (714) 740-7878. SUNDAY 2Live music. South Coast Plaza offers live music every Saturday and Sunday in April. Fletcher Harrington plays pop music on Saturday. Gabriel Mann plays jazz this week. The Push plays world music on April 26. And Kerry Getz plays pop on April 27. All performances are at 2 p.m., except the April 6 performance, which is at 4 p.m. South Coast Plaza is at 3333 Bear St., Costa Mesa.