[photo credit: The Huntington]
That collaboration between a nationally accredited music school on North Hill Avenue in Pasadena and one of Southern California’s most visited cultural landmarks in adjacent San Marino closes its spring 2026 season today. Canadian classical guitarist Juri Yun, a doctoral candidate at USC Thornton who debuted at Carnegie Hall in 2019, performs from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. in The Huntington Rose Garden. Admission is free with general Huntington entry; advance online tickets are required at huntington.org.
The series grew from a moment of listening. Tom Carruth, the E.L. & Ruth B. Shannon Curator of the Rose Collection at The Huntington, visited the Portland Rose Garden and heard live music threading through the blooms. He approached the Pasadena Conservatory of Music in November 2023. The partnership launched the following May.
“The addition of music in the garden had been mulling in my head for quite a while,” Carruth said. “Coming into the Rose Garden is a transformative experience for many of our visitors. The addition of music takes them to the next level of enjoyment.”
Yun performs on classical guitar the same instrument he brought to the Rose Garden in October 2025, when he appeared during the series’ fall season. He has performed across North America and Europe, won prizes consistently since 2014, and was mentored by guitarists David Russell and Pepe Romero. The three-acre garden he plays in today holds more than 1,300 cultivated rose varieties, a collection that dates to 1908.
Stephen Cook, executive director of the Pasadena Conservatory of Music, described the fit between the two institutions in a statement issued for the fall 2025 season launch. “As PCM’s community partnerships continue to grow both on and off campus,” Cook said, “Music in the Rose Garden at The Huntington is an especially beautiful pairing.”
PCM, founded in 1984 and based on North Hill Avenue in Pasadena, is a nationally accredited community music school serving more than 1,200 students annually. Its community engagement programs reach more than 3,000 students in Pasadena Unified School District schools. The conservatory is accredited by both the Accrediting Commission for Community and Precollegiate Arts Schools and the National Association of Schools of Music.
Today’s concert is the final Monday in the spring run, which began May 18. The series returns each fall; the 2025 fall season ran eight consecutive Mondays from September 29 through November 10.
The event may be canceled due to rain or excessive heat; same-day verification is recommended before visiting. General admission to The Huntington must be reserved in advance at huntington.org. The venue is located at 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108. Parking is free. The Huntington’s main number is (626) 405-2100.
When Carruth first heard music floating through a rose garden, it stayed with him. Two years later, the Pasadena Conservatory is still sending its musicians into the blooms.
