BY PHILLIP ZONKEL>LA.COM

---

Tired of the club scene? Are concert prices obscene? Well, local museums are offering hip alternatives to the usual hip alternatives.

On Friday, for instance, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles answers the question: What do indie hip-hop singer Kid Sister, turntablist A-Trak and a discussion about elephants communicating with seismic cues have in common?

Vibrations, of course.

It's all part of NHM's latest installment of First Fridays, the museum's monthly hybrid series - which runs through June - featuring scientific discussions, emerging musicians and a DJ lounge.

But NHM isn't the only museum offering nightlife. The Getty, the Hammer and the Orange County Museum of Art all have evening programs mixing music, exhibits and even drinks.

For the music portion of NHM's First Fridays, the museum has partnered with Silver Lake's Spaceland Productions to showcase some of the area's best undiscovered sonic talent. NHM's eclectic programming, which is in its fourth year, initially was geared at attracting the 25- to 35-year-old set but also has drawn older science and music enthusiasts.

The First Fridays series, which requires a separate admission, follows a theme, and this year's is "Discovery in the Age of Mammals: Building Brains and Making Minds." It focuses on the evolution of the developed brain capable of orchestrating complex behaviors, such as consciousness, emotional attachment, reasoning and language.

Don't fret - the discussions won't be a snore festival, says forum moderator Michael Quick.

"This isn't about nerd scientists getting together and talking about the intricacies of science," says Quick, a neuroscientist and professor of biological sciences at USC. "We're trying to stoke people's interest in science. There are some amazing things out there, and we want to make you aware of them."

Adds Su Oh, the Natural History Museum's manager of performing arts and exhibits: "We're taking definitions of words and concepts and challenging the pre-existing ideas and making it accessible."

For example, Friday's chapter is "The Elephant's Secret Sense," with guest speaker Caitlin O'Connell-Rodwell, an assistant professor at Stanford University's department of otolaryngology, head and neck surgery.

O'Connell-Rodwell will discuss her ground-breaking research on an elephant's ability to feel and interpret, via its sensitive trunk and feet, low-frequency vibrations. Elephants use the seismic cues to recognize and distinguish different elephants and changes in the weather, such as a faraway thunderstorm or an approaching tsunami, among other things.

When O'Connell-Rodwell is finished speaking, audience members can feel the vibrations of Kid Sister and A-Trak. Oh says First Fridays musicians will not always relate to the discussion topic. That scheduling would be too limiting, but this month's roster happened to coincide, she says.

Each First Fridays evening begins with a curator-guided tour of a specific gallery (this week's is of the discovery center and insect zoo), followed by the discussion forum on the second floor in the North American Mammal Hall.

After delving into the science of the mind, the series shows creative expression in action downstairs in the North American Mammal and African Mammal halls.

Encircled by bear, walrus, caribou, wolf, coyote and moose dioramas, Kid Sister and A-Trak will project hip-hop and turntable beats and vibrations.

Across the foyer, the African Mammal Hall will be transformed into a relaxing, chill-out DJ lounge surrounded by the iconic Savanna elephant and giraffe dioramas. While listening to ambient and bossa nova music spun by live DJs, visitors can order from a menu of six to eight organic entrees and a cash bar with beer and wine.

Apart from increasing attendance, First Fridays' intersecting of the natural and cultural worlds helps the museum achieve its educational mandate, Oh says.

"We're a venue for learning and discovery," she says. "These events are another way to meet that goal."

---

Phillip Zonkel, (562) 499-1258 phillip.zonkel@presstelegram.com

---

NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY

>Where: 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles.

>When: 5:30 to 10 p.m. the first Friday of the month, through June.

>Admission: $9, $6.50 students and children 13-17, $5 children 5-12, free for kids 5 and under and Natural History Museum members; parking is $6.

>Information: (213) 763-3466, www.nhm.org.

SCHEDULE:

>Friday: "The Elephant's Secret Sense," with Caitlin O'Connell-Rodwell, assistant professor at Stanford University's Department of Otolaryngology; musical guests Kid Sister and A-Trak.

>March 7: "From Animal to Person: How Cultural Evolution Furnishes Our Minds With Thinking Tools," with Tufts University professor Daniel C. Dennett; musical guests Yacht and Why?

>April 4: "Love and Feeling in the Age of Mammals," the psychobiology of love with Thomas B. Lewis, assistant psychiatry professor, University of California, San Francisco; musical guests to be determined.

>May 2: "How Does Evolution Build a Complex Brain?" with Leah Krubitzer, professor, University of California, Davis; musical guests to be determined.

>June 6: "Beautiful Minds: The Parallel Evolution of Apes and Dolphins and What It Means for Human Origins," with Craig Stanford, anthropology and biological sciences professor, USC; musical guests to be determined.

---

THE GETTY

>What: "Fridays Off the 405," an art and audio program curated by Flavorpill magazine, with an eclectic lineup of musicians. Guests also can tour the galleries, drink at the cash bar, or munch at the Garden Terrace Cafe.

>Where: 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles.

>When: 6 to 9 p.m. March 21, April4, May 30, June 27, July 25, Aug. 29, Sept. 19, Oct. 17 and Nov.28.

>Admission: Free.

>Information: (310) 440-7300, www.getty.edu.

---

HAMMER MUSEUM

>What: "Big Time," Filter magazine and Hammer Museum's bimonthly synergy spotlighting DJs spinning in the museum's courtyard.

>Where: 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles.

>When: 7 to 11 p.m. Feb. 7.

>Admission: Free; parking is $3.

>Information: (310) 443-7000, www.hammer.ucla.edu

---

ORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART

>What: "Orange Crush," up-and-coming Orange County and Los Angeles-area musicians and live DJs are thrown into the cultural mix at this monthly art party. Food and $2 beers available at the Citrus Cafe.

>Where: 850 San Clemente Drive, Newport Beach.

>When: 6 to 10 p.m. Feb. 21, March 20, April 17, May 15, June 19, July17 and Aug. 21.

>Admission: $5.

>Information: (949) 759-1122, www.ocma.net.

---