Faculty


Photo of Jason King wearing a green blazer.

Jason King

January 24, 2023

Jason King is the Dean of the USC Thornton School of Music in Los Angeles. He has been described as one of the most innovative figures at the intersection of music, education, media and cultural curation. A polymath with wide-ranging expertise over the past 25 years—as a scholar, journalist, producer, author, performer, filmmaker and curator—King… Continue reading Jason King


Otmaro Ruiz wearing a dark coat against a black background.

Otmaro Ruiz

January 17, 2023

Otmaro Ruiz is a jazz pianist with a diverse musical skill set, ranging from straight-ahead and pop-rock, to fusion, salsa and Afro-Cuban jazz. Of Venezuelan heritage, he worked intensively in the Venezuela jazz scene before moving to Los Angeles in 1989. He has since received an honorary doctorate in musical arts from Shepherd University, and… Continue reading Otmaro Ruiz


A black & white photograph of Josh Nelson

Josh Nelson

November 16, 2022

Pianist and composer Josh Nelson has been an active and creative artist for over twenty years. With ten albums as a leader, numerous other recordings, accolades and accomplishments, Nelson is one of the most in-demand pianists around. Recent projects with Brazilian legend Ivan Lins and superstar Michael Bublé are evidence that his piano and arranging… Continue reading Josh Nelson


Photo of Katie Thiroux holding an upright bass.

Katie Thiroux

June 7, 2022

Following her prodigious beginnings on bass at age 8 and studies under renowned vocalist Tierney Sutton at 12, Katie Thiroux was mentored by the legendary bassist John Clayton and was awarded a Phil Ramone Presidential Scholarship to Berklee College of Music while gaining experience on the bandstand with artists including Terrell Safford, Terri Lyne Carrington,… Continue reading Katie Thiroux


Photo of Christian Amonson in front of a mixing console in a sound studio

Christian Amonson

June 7, 2022

Christian Amonson is a recording engineer and producer specializing in acoustic music. Projects include John Williams and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Midori and the Kansas City Symphony, the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields at Abbey Road Studios in London and NPR’s JazzSet at the Kennedy Center, as well as groups like the LA… Continue reading Christian Amonson


Photo of Molly Miller holding a guitar in the sunlight

Molly Miller

June 7, 2022

Since Dr. Molly Miller picked up the guitar at age seven, she’s been captivating audiences with her sophisticated and raw style. She’s one of Los Angeles’s most sought-after musicians, recording and touring with artists such as Jason Mraz, Black Eyed Peas, and Sin Bandera, at venues such as the Hollywood Bowl, Royal Albert Hall, and… Continue reading Molly Miller


Photo of Jon Hatamiya playing a trombone

Jon Hatamiya

June 7, 2022

Since first arriving to Los Angeles in 2014, trombonist, composer and B.A.C. endorsing artist Jon Hatamiya has established himself as a go-to creative and improvising musician in L.A.’s vast music scene. Noted as one of the most promising trombonists to emerge from the Sacramento area, Hatamiya’s journey led him to New York and then Los… Continue reading Jon Hatamiya


León F. García Corona

León F. García Corona

May 9, 2022

León F. García Corona is a music scholar whose work focuses on the intersections between music and social issues of class and cultural membership in Mexico, and among its diasporic communities in the United States. His scholarship has been published by Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Latin American Music Review, American Music, the Canadian… Continue reading León F. García Corona


Photo of Jeanine Cowen

Jeanine Cowen

May 2, 2022

Jeanine Cowen is an active media composer and educator. She has previously served as a professor in the game and interactive media scoring area at Berklee College of Music. She is an active freelance composer, music producer and sound designer focusing primarily on the intersection of audio and visual medias, with particular interest in the… Continue reading Jeanine Cowen


Photo of Candice D. Mattio

Candice D. Mattio

April 25, 2022

Dr. Candice D. Mattio’s research focuses on the intersections of musical creativity, social issues in contemporary and popular music education, and technology-based music teaching and learning contexts. Her work has been presented on the international, national, and regional stages and awarded by the Conklin Forum on Social Justice in Music Teacher Education and the Bulletin… Continue reading Candice D. Mattio