Author Archive


Photo of Juan Pablo Contreras

Juan Pablo Contreras

August 27, 2021

Juan Pablo Contreras is a Latin GRAMMY®-nominated composer who combines Western classical and Mexican folk music in a single soundscape.


Photo of composer Nicolás Lell Benavides.

Nicolás Lell Benavides

August 27, 2021

Nicolas Tell Benavides is a celebrated composer who works in opera, dance and chamber music.


Photo of Lolita Ritmanis

Lolita Ritmanis

August 24, 2021

A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Class of 2021, Lolita Ritmanis is an Emmy Award-winning, and 10-time Emmy Award-nominated composer.


Portrait of Dean Robert Cutietta

August 16: A Message from Dean Cutietta and Restart Team to Students

August 23, 2021

We’re one week away from the start of the fall semester! Fall classes begin on Monday, August 23, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome you to campus.


Photo of Sophie Reeves

Sophie Reeves

August 20, 2021

Sophie Reeves has touched on many different aspects of the music industry in over a decade of experience including tour management, artist management, artist relations, and producing large scale events. She’s worked with some of the biggest artists in the world including Foster the People, Nas, Kygo, Jack Johnson, Frank Ocean, Skrillex and many others.… Continue reading Sophie Reeves


Photo of Ethan Chilton

Ethan Chilton releases first full-length album, “The Planets”

August 20, 2021

Ethan Chilton (’20), a Jazz Studies alum and current Master’s student, released his first full-length album, “The Planets.”


Black and white photo of Nina Shekhar

New York Philharmonic performs Nina Shekhar

August 17, 2021

The music of Nina Shekhar (MM ’20, Composition) will be featured as part of the New York Philharmonic’s 2021-22 season.


USC Thornton faculty member Troy Quinn conducts an outdoor symphony performance

Conductor Troy Quinn Takes Center Stage with the Rhode Island Philharmonic

August 11, 2021

USC Thornton faculty member Troy Quinn leads the 2021 summer pops series for the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra.


A Letter from the Director

July 27, 2021

Welcome to Arts Leadership at USC, a graduate program that redefines how we think about and practice arts leadership in the 21st Century. What makes Arts Leadership unique is its contemporary vision. The world is at a critical moment – one in which the extraordinary changes in demographics, economics, technology, globalization, environmentalism, and social practice… Continue reading A Letter from the Director


Photo of Andrew Norman wearing a blue shirt.

Andrew Norman

August 14, 2013

Norman, a composer, educator, and music advocate, has established himself as a significant voice in American classical music. His work draws on an eclectic mix of sounds and performance practices, and his music casts a wide sonic and conceptual net in order to explore, reflect, challenge and address the experiences of our own time. He… Continue reading Andrew Norman