Ronald McCurdy co-authors article on changing trends in performing arts education

USC Thornton Jazz Studies faculty member Ronald C. McCurdy co-authored an article in the October edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education entitled “The New Performing-Arts Curriculum.” The article, with contributions from faculty members of Clemson University in South Carolina, examined the need for performance and arts-related degree programs to adapt curricula to accommodate a shrinking number of full-time arts careers. The piece also discussed the benefits of schools like USC, which offer students a more vocational approach to the arts through programs such as Music Industry and Music Technology.

A highly-regarded trumpet player, McCurdy recently performed with the Ron McCurdy Quartet at Walt Disney Concert Hall, presenting their rendition of Langston Hughes’ epic 1961 jazz poem, “Ask Your Mama.”