Craig DeSilva
Host of Evening Concert (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday)Craig DeSilva is glad to be playing recorded music on the air instead of playing for a live audience on stage as did when he studied piano. He began piano lessons when he was a child and continued piano studies at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (where he majored in broadcast journalism and minored in music) under the late Peter Coraggio.
Craig got his start in radio as a news reporter and announcer on Hawaiʻi Public Radio and has filed stories for many national radio programs, including National Public Radio, Public Radio International, and Voice of America. Off the public radio airwaves, he’s written for Hawaii Business magazine and was assistant editor for Pacific Islands Report at the East-West Center.
Heʻs currently employed as a corporate writer at HMSA and writes for Island Scene magazine. Craig is a proud supporter of local arts and culture in Hawaiʻi. He serves on the volunteer board for Honolulu Chamber Music Series. And he enjoys sharing music on Evening Concert that highlights arts events in the Islands -- your requests are welcome.
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Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra’s Michael-Thomas Foumai previews this weekend’s HSO concerts, featuring a hapai Joyce Yang performing Rachmaninoff’s popular Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. He tells host Craig DeSilva why Johannes Brahms took 20 years to write his first symphony. And he talks about a concert with his good friend and music collaborator, Uncle “K” – Keola Beamer, who’ll be performing slack-key guitar with Jeff Peterson. Also, hear a preview of HSO’s Summer Festival and how you can attend a free concert at Kailua District Park. -
Dr. Youhei Imoto is a Honolulu physical therapist who recently rekindled his love of playing the piano. He’s performed in a competition for amateur pianists at Carnegie Hall in New York City and will compete this summer at Suntory Hall in Tokyo. Imoto spoke to Craig DeSilva on Evening Concert about being inspired by the music of Beethoven, Chopin, and – yes – Disney. -
Japanese anime is all the craze in Hawaiʻi. Anime audiences love both the visuals and the music score composed by Joe Hisaishi. Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra will perform music from films by Studio Ghibli, one of Japan’s leading animation studios. HSO’s Michael-Thomas Foumai, who’ll be conducting the concert, and Totoro, one of the stars of the film My Neighbor Totoro, gave a sneak peek on Evening Concert. -
Dian Hermes of Waiʻalae Elementary Public Charter School seems to have the musical touch. As the Hawaiʻi representative for the Met Opera’s HD Live in Schools program, Hermes immerses her students in opera to make it more accessible. -
Hawaiʻi Public Radio has launched another series of Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra broadcasts. John Kalani Zak, host and producer of the HSO broadcasts, gave a preview on Evening Concert with host Craig DeSilva. You can hear the concert broadcasts on Mondays at 8 p.m. following Evening Concert on HPR-2. -
The music of Queen Liliʻuokalani will be celebrated in concerts by the Mana Music Quartet. The concerts will feature the songs of Hawaiʻi’s last monarch in arrangements for string quartet, including her popular Aloha ʻOe. -
Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra’s concertmaster Iggy Jang and principal horn Anna Lenhart take the spotlight this weekend. The HSO concert will feature them as soloists performing two beloved works in the violin and horn repertoire. -
California-based conductor Ben Makino is on a quest to find a decent pair of shoes in Hawaiʻi. Find out why in his conversation with Evening Concert host Craig DeSilva. Makino is in Hawaiʻi to conduct Hawaiʻi Opera Theater’s concert stage production of Bizet’s opera Carmen. He talks about what drew him to the opera for the first time and why Carmen has been captivating audiences for the past 150 years. -
Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra’s Michael-Thomas Foumai is a huge Star Wars fan. So he was excited to talk about the new HSO movie concert series featuring Return of the Jedi. He even brought along a furry friend to join him on Evening Concert with host Craig DeSilva. Foumai reveals what got him hooked with the Star Wars movies and John Williams’ film score. -
Erica Glenn has her game on. She’s preparing her student choir at Brigham Young University Hawaiʻi to perform in the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra’s Game On! concerts. Glenn spoke to Evening Concert host Craig DeSilva about how the concert provides her student singers with an opportunity to showcase their singing and acting talents.
