The 12th movement of “Carmina Burana” tells the story of a once-beautiful swan being roasted on a spit. As the swan gets closer to being fully cooked, the movement progresses in speed and provides a fun and challenging test for choir students, said Lesley Leighton, a choral director at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. Read more...

Photo: UCLA choral director Lesley Leighton will conduct the UCLA Choral Union and UCLA Philharmonia’s performance of “Carmina Burana” on Thursday in Royce Hall. (Ken Shin/Daily Bruin)

If Kendrick Lamar’s leftover music were leftover food, it could be sold at the finest restaurant in Los Angeles. Reservations would be fully booked for five years because of the exceptional quality of everything he produces. Read more...

Photo: (Courtesy of Top Dawg Entertainment)

Hip Hop Explosion would have been a medley of incomprehensible noise without Isaiah Rashad. Students bounded up the steep, low-lit staircase leading to Ackerman Grand Ballroom, chatting about how excited they were to hear hip-hop performers Rashad and Casey Veggies at the Cultural Affairs Commission’s Hip Hop Explosion concert event Thursday. Read more...

Photo: Rapper Isaiah Rashad transformed the Hip Hop Explosion stage into a melodic, neo-soul space where the audience grooved along to soft beats. (Daniel Alcazar/Daily Bruin senior staff)