Art Beat - WUCF

Thomas Potter teaches voice at UCF, and spent many years performing in opera houses across Europe. In this segment, he talks about his career. Potter and his wife, soprano Kimberly Randall, will be soloists in this Sunday's Lutheran Cantata Choir concert at St. Lukes Church in Oviedo. He will also perform in Wagner's Das Rheingold for Indianapolis Opera this May.

Another major event opening this weeekend is the 18th Annual Florida Film Festival. It features 160 films from over 30 countries; click here to see reviews by Orlando Sentinel film critic, Roger Moore.

Lisa Mills, a professor of film at UCF, has several documentaries to her credit, including a short film that won the Cultural Achievement Category at last month's MoFilm Festival in Barcelona, Spain.

Young musicians are invited to try their hand at composing by entering the 2009 Young Composers Challenge. A free workshop on Saturday, April 4 gives tips to new and experienced composers. Registration is limited so sign up soon.

We talk to Tamas Kocsis, the concertmaster of the Orlando Philharmonic, who will be the soloist Saturday night in the Brahms Violin Concerto.

Also, another quick look at the UCF Orlando Jazz Festival which runs Friday & Saturday night.

It's Today - An Evening of Jerry Herman opens March 20 & runs for 3 days at UCF Theatre, presented by the graduate students in the MFA program in Musical Theatre. It was written, directed and choreographed by Earl Weaver. For tickets call 407-823-1500.

Mark Snyder is a multi-media electronic composer who combines ambient music and computer technology with videos. He'll perform at the UCF Music Rehearsal Hall on Tuesday, March 17 at 8pm.

The final installment of our series looks at jazz legend Lou Donaldson and organist Akiko Tsuruga, who will perform Saturday night at the UCF Orlando Jazz Festival. Don't forget the clinics and talks by the jazz greats.

Our next installment on the UCF Orlando Jazz Festival looks at Friday's headliner, Kevin Mahogony.

Also, The Orlando Chorale is in concert Saturday night at 1st United Methodist Church in downtown Orlando - the program features a premiere by Christopher Marshall, UCF's music department's Composer-in-Residence, and faculty member George Wereumchuk as soloist.

All this week we have previews of the 2nd Annual UCF Orlando Jazz Festival. Headliners include jazz vocalist Kevin Mahagony and jazz legend Lou Donaldson. This year you can purchase tickets online.

Part 3 of a series on the UCF Center for Emerging Media features a conversation with Jose Fernandez, Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. We also talk about his appointment to a White House Commission looking at the feasibility of creating the National Museum of the American Latino.