
Marilyn Horne to receive Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award
USC Thornton alumna Marilyn Horne was recently announced as one of the Recording Academy’s 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award honorees. Horne is widely celebrated as one of the world’s most renowned opera singers. Her decades-spanning career has earned her four GRAMMY Awards and 15 nominations, as well as a 1992 National Medal of Arts and numerous […]

Vivian Stover awarded 2020 Eileen Southern Travel Grant
Vivian Stover, an undergraduate student in the Vocal Arts & Opera program, was awarded the Eileen Southern Travel Grant by the American Musicology Society (AMS) in September. The grant is awarded annually to undergraduate and graduate students underrepresented in the field of musicology, and provides funds to support travel and lodging expenses for awardees to […]

Lynn Helding authors paper on COVID-19 effects on vocalists
USC Thornton Vocal Arts and Opera faculty member Lynn Helding is the lead author of “COVID-19 After Effects: Concerns for Singers,” a new paper published in the Journal of Voice. The paper, co-authored by Dr. Michael Johns, director of the USC Voice Center at Keck Medicine, offers an in-depth look at the potential damages and […]

Students to perform work by Juhi Bansal in LA Opera educational program
Los Angeles area students will learn and perform an opera by Composition alum Juhi Bansal (BM ’06, MM ’08, DMA ’12) in the upcoming season of LA Opera’s Secondary In-School Opera program. The remote workshops are an opportunity for students to sharpen their theatrical skills with a contemporary work. Bansal’s opera, “Enchantress of Numbers,” explores […]

USC Thornton artists featured in KUSC’s “Play On, California!”
In a daily broadcast and online feature titled “Play On, California!” Classical KUSC highlights the work California musicians and arts organizations are doing to continue sharing music and create online experiences for audiences while live concerts remain halted. The feature highlights USC Thornton’s Live! From Somewhere series, and the work of various Thornton alumni and […]

Daily Trojan highlights Live! From Somewhere performance series
The Daily Trojan, USC’s student-led newspaper, recently highlighted USC Thornton’s new video series, Live! From Somewhere. The series was launched on March 16 in response to recent closures and event cancellations, and as the school’s artists have looked for ways to continue making music while social distancing. Live! From Somewhere presents homemade performances by Thornton […]

Angela Meade receives glowing reviews for “Roberto Devereux” performance
Vocal Arts & Opera alum and highly renowned soprano Angela Meade (MM ’04) received glowing reviews for her role as Queen Elizabeth I in LA Opera’s production of “Roberto Devereux.” OperaWire praised her vocal performance and stage presence, writing: “Soprano Angela Meade offered a riveting performance as the Queen displaying the widest range of emotions […]

Angela Meade stars in LA Opera production of Roberto Devereux
Vocal Arts & Opera alum Angela Meade (MM ’04) will star as Queen Elizabeth I in LA Opera’s production of Roberto Devereux. The company premiere will run from Feb. 22 to March 14. This will be her third appearance with LA Opera, after her debut in 2012 in Don Giovanni, and her 2015 performance in […]

Lynn Helding releases new book bridging brain science and music performance
Vocal Arts and Opera faculty member Lynn Helding has recently released her new book,

Rod Gilfry receives warm reviews for “Eurydice”
USC Thornton Vocal Arts faculty member Rod Gilfry has been met with warm reviews for his performance as Eurydice’s father in LA Opera’s “Eurydice,” a new opera composed by Matthew Aucoin with playwright Sarah Ruhl. The Los Angeles Times calls Gilfry’s performance an “exceptional accomplishment” and describes his character as “the voice from the beyond […]