USC celebrates Diversity Week Jan. 22-26
From Monday, January 22nd to Friday the 26th, 2018, the USC community will come together for Diversity & Inclusion Awareness Week, presenting over 60 events, workshops, talks, and panels from “Understanding Allyship” to “Tips for Pronouncing Chinese Names.” USC Thornton faculty will take part in several events, including “And Still We Rise: Women of Color… Continue reading USC celebrates Diversity Week Jan. 22-26
William E. Rutherford memorial to be held January 27
William E. Rutherford (1929-2017) was an esteemed and renowned scholar, writer, and professor of Linguistics at USC for thirty years. He was also a musician and performed early music on the harpsichord and organ. In the 1960s, he formed the Musica Pacifica ensemble with Shirley Marcus, Ruth Adams, Morris Newman, and others, and the group… Continue reading William E. Rutherford memorial to be held January 27
Bassoonist Elizabeth Roberts earns position with Virginia Symphony
USC Thornton Winds & Percussion alumna Elizabeth Roberts (MM ’01, bassoon) recently won the position of Contrabassoon with the Norfolk-based Virginia Symphony Orchestra. Roberts has also served as Principal Bassoon and Director of Youth Education for the Charlottesville Symphony since 2001, where she teaches on the faculty of the University of Virginia.
Pianist Daniel Pollack attends the 2017 St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum
Renowned pianist and USC Thornton Keyboard Studies faculty member Daniel Pollack, was an honored participant at the St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum in November. At the inaugural forum in 2016, Pollack became the first recipient of the exceptional designation, “The Forum Ambassador,” granted to Russian and foreign prominent culture and arts experts. At the 2017… Continue reading Pianist Daniel Pollack attends the 2017 St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum
Street Symphony project, featuring USC Thornton artists, profiled in “The New Yorker”
“One act of love, I know for sure, is listening,” said homeless singer Brian Palmer in The New Yorker magazine’s recent profile of the groundbreaking Street Symphony, which brings Handel’s “Messiah” to the Midnight Mission in Los Angeles’ Skid Row each holiday season. The article, by Alex Ross, explores the extraordinary outreach work of the… Continue reading Street Symphony project, featuring USC Thornton artists, profiled in “The New Yorker”
Veronika Krausas pens article for Association of Canadian Women Composers
Composer and USC Thornton faculty member Veronika Krausas contributed an article to the Fall/Winter 2017 journal of the Association of Canadian Women Composers (ACWC), chronicling her September collaboration with artist Ana Prvacki and architecture firm SO-IL for the Chicago Architecture Biennial. The team’s performance piece, L’air pour l’air, was staged at Chicago’s Garfield Park Conservatory… Continue reading Veronika Krausas pens article for Association of Canadian Women Composers
Alumnus Michael Abels earns praise for “Get Out” Soundtrack
Composer and USC Thornton alumnus Michael Abels (’84, Composition) is the subject of a recent Los Angeles Times profile for his scoring work for Jordan Peele’s hit 2017 thriller, Get Out. Peele discovered the composer, who is best known for his gospel and orchestral compositions, through a Youtube clip of Abel’s Urban Legends concerto for… Continue reading Alumnus Michael Abels earns praise for “Get Out” Soundtrack
Applications now open for the Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship
https://youtu.be/knurXxcenH0 The USC Thornton School of Music, Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (ICYOLA) and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) have teamed up to launch a post-graduate fellowship program for musicians from underrepresented communities on the verge of launching careers in orchestral performance. The West Coast’s first comprehensive orchestral fellowship program for top-tier string… Continue reading Applications now open for the Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship
Works by Composition alumni performed by Minnesota Orchestra
Last month, the Minnesota Orchestra performed works by two USC Thornton Composition alumni under the baton of Osmo Vänskä. Saad Haddad (BM ’14) and Peter Shin (MM ’17) were both participants in the 2017-18 Minnesota Orchestra Composer Institute, a five day workshop featuring rehearsals and seminars, culminating in a public performance. The orchestra performed Haddad’s… Continue reading Works by Composition alumni performed by Minnesota Orchestra
Jenny Wong debuts as associate conductor of the Los Angeles Master Chorale
Jenny Wong (MM ’13, choral), a DMA candidate in the USC Thornton Choral & Sacred Music program, made her public debut as associate conductor of the Los Angeles Master Chorale on December 10th, leading the ensemble in J.S. Bach’s six motets at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Wong notably conducted the program from memory, adding cellos… Continue reading Jenny Wong debuts as associate conductor of the Los Angeles Master Chorale