JAZZ / CARTE BLANCHE TO TOM RANIER to Play Mount Wilson Observatory

Mount Wilson Observatory is set to present JAZZ / CARTE BLANCHE TO TOM RANIER on Sunday, August 9, 2026, the fourth concert of its ninth season of Sunday Afternoon Concerts in the Dome. The performance takes place inside the dome of the observatory's historic 100-inch Telescope in the mountains above Los Angeles, with two one-hour showings scheduled at 3:00pm and 5:00pm. The program features pianist Tom Ranier, guitarist Larry Koonse, and bassist Darek Oles performing jazz compositions, American songbook standards, and classical pieces in a piano-guitar-bass trio format. Artistic Director Cécilia Tsan, Principal Cellist of the Long Beach Symphony and Los Angeles Master Chorale, curates the series.

Each concert date of the season features the same one-hour program presented twice—first at 3:00pm and again at 5:00pm—with an artist reception at 4:00pm between performances.

Tickets cost $65 each and are available for purchase online in advance (highly recommended) or at the door, pending availability. For more information on this concert, visit mtwilson.edu/events/concert80926. For more on the entire Sunday Afternoon Concerts in the Dome series, visit mtwilson.edu/concerts.

Photo Credit: A previous concert inside MWO's 100-inch Telescope dome. Photo by Melissa Dougherty.

UPCOMING CONCERTS IN THE 2026 SEASON:

September 6: Webern String Quartet

A program featuring Todd Mason String Quartet No. 5, 'The Phoenix' (2025), and Beethoven String Quartet No. 15, Op. 132, performed by Webern String Quartet—Benjamin Hoffman and Chiai Tajima (violins), Alex Granger (viola), and Stella Cho (cello).

October 4: Piano Quartets

Featuring David Kaplan (piano), Ambroise Aubrun (violin), Ariana Solotoff (viola), and Cécilia Tsan (cello), playing Mahler and Brahms Op.60 in C minor.

ABOUT THE PERFORMERS

Tom Ranier (piano)

Tom Ranier is an acclaimed pianist, composer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist whose distinguished career spans film, television, recording, and live performance. Equally at home on piano, synthesizers, and woodwinds, he has contributed to countless television productions and major motion pictures, including Ghost, Beetlejuice, Forrest Gump, Sleepless in Seattle, A League of Their Own, The Thomas Crown Affair, Monsters, Inc., Sideways, Frozen, Star Wars: Episode IX, and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. His television credits include American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, the Academy Awards, the Emmy Awards, the Golden Globe Awards, and the American Music Awards. As an accompanist, Ranier has performed with legendary artists including Tony Bennett, Andrea Bocelli, Bette Midler, Madonna, Annie Lennox, Donna Summer, Melissa Manchester, Carmen McRae, and Sue Raney.

An accomplished clarinetist as well as pianist, Ranier has appeared as a soloist performing the Mozart and Artie Shaw Clarinet Concertos and Dave Grusin's Concerto for Clarinet and Jazz Orchestra, and has recorded with jazz greats including Milt Jackson, Kenny Burrell, Ray Brown, Joe Pass, and Eddie Daniels. He has released four solo albums—In the Still of the Night, Ranier, Night Music, and This Way—and has shared his expertise as a faculty member at UCLA, California State University, Fullerton, Saddleback College, and Fullerton College.

Photo Credit: Left: Tom Ranier. Right: Larry Koonse. Both photos courtesy of each artist.

Larry Koonse (guitar)

Larry Koonse is an internationally acclaimed guitarist, composer, and educator whose career has spanned more than four decades. A Los Angeles native, he's been playing guitar since the age of seven and in his early years trained under legendary guitarist Jimmy Wyble. At the age of fifteen, he recorded an album with his father, guitarist Dave Koonse, entitled Father & Son Jazz Guitars. In 1984, Larry was the first recipient of a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies at the University of Southern California. Following graduation, Koonse toured internationally with the John Dankworth Quartet and Cleo Laine, launching a career that has included collaborations with Billy Childs, John Patitucci, Natalie Cole, Mel Tormé, Luciana Souza, Bob Mintzer, Peter Erskine, Hubert Laws, and many others. A multiple Grammy nominee, he has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Sydney Opera House, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and as a featured soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and orchestras around the world.

Featured on more than 400 recordings, Koonse has also released numerous acclaimed albums as a leader and co-leader, including Conversations, Storybook, Americana, and What's in the Box. His solo guitar work was featured throughout Crazy, a feature film chronicling the life of the great guitarist Hank Garland. An influential educator, he developed the guitar curriculum for Jeff Berlin's Players School and has served on the faculty of the California Institute of the Arts since 1990, where he continues to mentor generations of musicians.

Darek Oles (bass)

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