Ben Bram and Scott Hoying win second GRAMMY Awards with Pentatonix
USC Thornton alums Ben Bram (’10, music industry) and Scott Hoying won their second GRAMMY Awards last night for their arrangement of Pentatonix’s “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy,” from the a cappella super-group’s “That’s Christmas to Me” album. For the second straight year, the duo won for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella, the… Continue reading Ben Bram and Scott Hoying win second GRAMMY Awards with Pentatonix
Cellist Marek Szpakiewicz to be featured in Tohuku earthquake memorial concert
Cellist and USC Thornton alumnus Marek Szpakiewicz (MM ’01, DMA ’08) will be featured as a soloist in a March 13 concert with pianist Fuzjko Hemming. The concert, at the Colburn School’s Zipper Hall, will commemorate the fifth anniversary of the 2011 Tohuku earthquake and tsunami. Featuring music from Schubert to Mozart to Brahms, the… Continue reading Cellist Marek Szpakiewicz to be featured in Tohuku earthquake memorial concert
Alumna Julie Boardman produces Forest Whitaker debut on Broadway
USC Thornton alumna Julie Boardman (BS ’04, music industry) will co-produce the Broadway debut of fellow USC alumnus Forest Whitaker this month in Eugene O’Neill’s “Hughie.” The Michael Grandage-directed play is set in a faded hotel in Manhattan where a down-on-his-luck gambler mourns the death of the hotel’s night clerk, Hughie, and recalls his glory… Continue reading Alumna Julie Boardman produces Forest Whitaker debut on Broadway
Alumnus Robin Buck featured in Long Beach Opera’s “Candide”
Baritone and USC Thornton Vocal Arts alumnus Robin Buck (MM ’85) is currently appearing in the Long Beach Opera’s production of Leonard Bernstein’s “Candide,” running Jan. 23 and 30. Buck performs the roles of Pangloss and Voltaire in the operetta, which won four Tony Awards in 1974. Buck has sung extensively as a featured artist… Continue reading Alumnus Robin Buck featured in Long Beach Opera’s “Candide”
Pianist Steven Vanhauwaert releases two new albums
USC Thornton alumnus Steven Vanhauwaert (MM ’06, GCRT ’08, piano) released two collaborative albums last month, “Joseph Woelfl: The Paris Years” and “Pensées Intimes” (“Intimate Thoughts”). Both recordings were created in collaboration with violinist and UCLA professor Guillaume Sutre. The first album, “Joseph Woelfl: The Paris Years,” which also features Kyunghee Kim-Sutre on the harp,… Continue reading Pianist Steven Vanhauwaert releases two new albums
Composer alumnus Tristan Koester finds success with commissions
Composer and Thornton alumnus Tristan Xavier Koester (’15) recently premiered a piece entitled “Memory Fragments” with the Varied Trio, a chamber ensemble featuring Thornton alumni Yuri Inoo (MM ’04, DMA ’09, percussion) and Aron Kallay (DMA ’09, piano). His upcoming work includes recording projects with the trio, as well as traditional Chinese guzheng player Sun… Continue reading Composer alumnus Tristan Koester finds success with commissions
MUNA’s “Loudspeaker” at #1 on list of 50 best songs of 2015
The band MUNA, which was formed by USC Thornton Popular Music graduate Katie Gavin (BA ’15), current student Josette Maskin (BM ’16), along with Naomi McPherson, took the top spot in ShortList‘s “50 Best Songs of 2015.” The annual rundown, which highlights the publication’s favorite tracks from “big, small, old and new artists alike,” praised… Continue reading MUNA’s “Loudspeaker” at #1 on list of 50 best songs of 2015
Alumnus Olivier Ochanine wins international conducting competiton
Conductor Olivier Ochanine (MM ’07, conducting), USC Thornton alumnus and music director of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, has received first prize at the 2015 Antal Doráti International Conducting Competition in Budapest. The prestigious competition, created in honor of the Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became an American citizen in 1947, was held in collaboration with… Continue reading Alumnus Olivier Ochanine wins international conducting competiton
Royce Saltzman receives Lifetime Achievement Award at World Choral Expo
USC Thornton alumnus Royce Saltzman (DMA ’63), a highly esteemed leader in the field of choral music, received the International Federation for Choral Music’s ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ at the World Choral Expo in Macau, China, in November. Saltzman was instrumental in founding IFCM and served as the group’s President for eight years. Saltzman is also… Continue reading Royce Saltzman receives Lifetime Achievement Award at World Choral Expo
Clarinet alumni take orchestral positions
Two clarinet alumni of USC Thornton Winds and Percussion faculty member Yehuda Gilad have secured positions with American orchestras. Brad Whitfield (MM ’11) recently won the Assistant Principal Clarinet chair with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, under maestro Christopher Confessore. Sergei Vassiliev (GCRT ’09), who recently became Principal Clarinet for the Colorado Springs Philharmonic, was the… Continue reading Clarinet alumni take orchestral positions