Celebrating the Fall Semester
By Mia Arevalo
The pioneering, boundary-defying spirit of USC Thornton is celebrated at the closing of another exhilarating semester.
This year, the “Beyond Category” ethos at USC Thornton continued to guide the school further into the vanguard of music education. From landmark events and partnerships to celebrating the professional development and accomplishments of our faculty, alumni and students, this bold, boundary-crossing spirit became the defining rhythm of the fall semester.
Spirited Performances
Following the visionary conversations of the “Spotlight on Thornton” kickoff, the semester’s concert calendar showcased the exceptional artistry of students and faculty in action, beginning with an in-depth conversation on the ethics of paying tribute with the current artist-in-residence in Jazz Studies, seven-time Grammy Award-nominated pianist, composer and USC Thornton alumnus Gerald Clayton (’07).
The performance season then unfolded with several major classical concerts featuring both classic repertoire and contemporary works. The USC Thornton Symphony collaborated with world-renowned conductor Leonard Slatkin, who led a program on October 24. The ensemble also presented its Concerto Night on October 8, featuring student soloists Olivia Cho (cello), Collin Juniper (saxophone), and Soli Cyrus Nallaseth (piano) performing works by Barber, Yoshimatsu, and Mozart under the baton of artistic leader and principal conductor of the Thornton Orchestras, Carl St.Clair.
The semester was rich with specialized events that highlighted the depth of the school’s community. The USC Polish Music Center held its annual Paderewski Lecture-Recital on October 19, offering a scholarly and musical exploration of composer Szymon Laks. Legendary songwriter Diane Warren visited for a special Trojan Family Weekend conversation with Dean Jason King on November 7, which was paired with live student performances of her iconic hits penned for acts such as Aerosmith, Toni Braxton and Celine Dion
The fall performance calendar culminated in the Thornton Chamber Music Festival, a multi-day showcase from December 2-4. The festival featured dedicated evenings for strings, vocal arts and classical guitar, celebrating the collaborative artistry and refined skill developed in the school’s studios and rehearsal rooms.
Grammy Nominations
On November 7, 2025, the announcement of the 68th Grammy Awards revealed a staggering 27 nominations for the Thornton community. This was not acclaim confined to a single discipline. The nominations highlight the school’s broad influence across the music industry:
- In the Album of the Year category, recent alumni were integral to nominated works: engineers Jason Ren (BM’ 22) and Johnny May (BM ‘23) mixed Tyler, The Creator’s CHROMAKOPIA, Frank Lookinland (BM’ 24) engineered Justin Bieber’s SWAG, and Peter Lee Johnson (BM ‘13) served as producer and songwriter on Leon Thomas’ MUTT.
- For Record of the Year, the mixing work of Aron Forbes (BM ‘07) on Billie Eilish’s “WILDFLOWER” and immersive engineering by Juan Razuri (BM ‘24) on Doechii’s “Anxiety” were recognized.
- The school’s current artist-in-residence in Jazz Studies, Gerald Clayton (BM ‘07), is nominated for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for Ones & Twos.
- Screen Scoring alumnus Ludwig Göransson (GCRT ‘08) and USC Thornton creative vanguard artist Raphael Saadiq are nominated as songwriters for “I Lied To You” from the film Sinners. Göransson is also nominated for his score on the same film.
- Classical guitarist Mak Grgić (MM ‘12, DMA ‘16, GCRT ‘20) earned his fourth nomination for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance.
The nominations extend into production, songwriting and engineering across R&B, rock, electronic and choral categories. For the extended list, read here.
Major Partnerships Forge the Future
If the nominations affirmed Thornton’s current, external impact on the modern musical landscape, a historic new partnership charted its future-facing vision. The announcement that artist, composer and cultural visionary, Solange, would join as the school’s inaugural scholar-in-residence sent a definitive signal. This three-year appointment, part of the Dean’s Creative Vanguard, brings Solange’s work as a “living archive” and her interdisciplinary practice promises to inject a powerful, new creative methodology directly into the Thornton ecosystem, mentoring students who will themselves work beyond traditional categories.
This celebration of artists’ transcendence of modern boundaries was further amplified through the school’s flagship “Beyond Category” series, which hosted a public conversation with five-time Grammy-winning artist H.E.R. on September 11. The series, dedicated to artists who defy genre, serves as both a public forum and a core educational pillar. In January of 2026, the series continues with an array of events honoring the life and music of Nina Simone.
The philosophy also extends to leadership and institutional collaboration, as demonstrated in a special edition of Thornton’s long-standing “Music@RushHour” series. This event featured a unique convergence of vision, bringing together USC’s new, classically trained cellist President Beong-Soo Kim, LA Phil and Hollywood Bowl executive and Thornton alumna Meghan Umber, and Dean Jason King. Their conversation explored the integration of artistic practice and leadership, a dialogue that was then put into immediate practice as President Kim joined Thornton students in a performance of Schumann’s Piano Quartet. This event perfectly embodied the semester’s theme: erasing the lines between artist and administrator, conversation and performance, and education and professional practice.
Awards, Alumni & Faculty Accolades
The fall semester’s narrative of excellence was further defined by major awards and honors bestowed upon Thornton’s programs, its alumni and its faculty.
On October 25, Thornton was named on Billboard’s list of Top Music Business Schools for the seventh consecutive year, a testament to the enduring strength of its professional training.
Alumni excellence was prominently displayed at the 77th Emmy Awards on September 14. Screen Scoring graduates David Bertok (GCRT ‘13) and Duncan Thum (‘06, GCRT ‘13) won for Outstanding Music Composition for the series Chef’s Table, while Christopher Lennertz (‘95) took home the award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for The Boys. In a crowning achievement for a legendary career, former Thornton Board of Councilors member Lenny Waronker was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025. As the visionary former president of Warner Bros. Records, Waronker was honored for his unparalleled role in shaping American pop culture by championing artists like Prince, R.E.M. and Randy Newman – himself a former mentor in the USC Thornton Music Mentorship Program.
Musicology professor Nate Sloan earned a bronze Signal Award for Best Original Score for his acclaimed podcast, Switched on Pop, which decodes the craft of popular music. Music Industry program chair Michael Garcia was named Music & Entertainment Industry Educator of the Year by the International Entertainment Buyers Association (IEBA), recognizing his leadership in bridging professional venue management with academia.
As we look to the new year, the school carries this momentum forward, ever committed to shaping the future of music. This is the sound of Thornton, and it only grows louder from here.
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Written by Mia Arevalo, Public Relations and Advertising major and student journalist on assignment for the USC Thornton Office of Communications. Photo by David Lee.
