University of Southern California

Jason Goldman leads the USC Thornton Concert Jazz Orchestra in a performance of Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite. The evening also includes student ensembles led by faculty members Kathleen Grace and Edwin Livingston. The Nutcracker Suite was released by famed bandleader Duke Ellington in 1960, a jazz interpretation in nine movements of "The Nutcracker" by Tchaikovsky, arranged by Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.

USC Thornton School of Music professor Ron McCurdy celebrates the 1935 collaboration of celebrated Chinese musician Li Jinhui and jazz musician Buck Clayton with a unique blend of American jazz and Chinese traditional music. In 1935, Los Angeles–based musician Buck Clayton formed a jazz band called Harlem Gentlemen to perform in Shanghai. Li Jinhui, who is considered the father of Chinese popular music, had been performing in the “Paris of the East” for years when Clayton and his colleagues arrived. Clayton and Li eventually worked together to form a new and unique blend of American jazz and Chinese traditional music. This boundary-breaking performance will celebrate Li Jinhui and Buck Clayton’s collaboration. USC Thornton professor Ron McCurdy and alum Gary Shields have reimagined and orchestrated three suites of Li Jinhui’s folk songs. Blending three cultures—Western art music (classical), American jazz, and traditional Chinese music—the concert will feature the Ron McCurdy Quintet, Feng Bian on piano, and Min Xiao Fen on pipa, a traditional Chinese string instrument. The performance will also include historical video footage reflecting the artists, iconic buildings, and culture of Shanghai in the 1920s and 1930s. Presented by USC Visions and Voices: The Arts & Humanities Initiative.

Students from Thornton's jazz programs showcase contemporary jazz works.

ALAJE, the USC Thornton Afro-Latin American Jazz Ensemble led by Aaron Serfaty, and CreSCendo, the Vocal Jazz Ensemble led by Sara Gazarek, headline this ongoing series of contemporary jazz.

Led by professors Andy Abad and Patrice Rushen, first-year Popular Music students explore the foundations of their craft.

Sean Holt leads second-year Popular Music students in this showcase, focusing on stylistic nuance, groove, and ensemble technique.

Third-year Popular Music students present original music written, arranged, and performed under the direction of professors Patrice Rushen and Paul Jackson Jr.

Young student jazz ensembles from the Los Angeles community perform as part of the USC Thornton Community Engagement Programs, funded in part by the USC Good Neighbors Campaign.