“My dad’s passion for classical music was contagious and the unlikely subject of classical music became so popular, (that) the show was syndicated in 1974,” said Haas.

By the ’90s, Haas said, “Adventures in Good Music” aired on more than 600 radio stations in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand as well as in Russia and Asia.

Growing up, Haas said he received his musical inspiration from his father. He started piano studies with his father when he was five years old, began theory and composition studies in his early teens and has now been performing professionally for almost 30 years.

“Literally not a week goes by without several people telling me they were regular listeners of my dad’s show,” he said. “Many people say things like, ‘Everything I know about classical music, I learned from your dad’s show.’”

Haas, who has composed over 130 compositions, will perform many of his recent tunes with his quintet to pay tribute to the 100-year anniversary of his father, who was born in 1913.

He said his music has been described as soulful, funky, introspective, melancholy and has “Jewish jazz” and straight-ahead jazz styles.

Ryonn Clute, marketing manager for Wharton Center, said she is excited to bring Haas and the quintet to East Lansing because of the impact Karl Haas had on the music scene.

She said the tribute will feature a mix of jazz, classical and other musical arrangements. Additionally, a 20-minute video highlighting Karl Haas’s journey from Nazi Germany to Detroit, Clute said.

Staff reporter Ariel Ellis contributed to this report.