
Angelica Cortez
Angelica Cortez (she/her) is a Los Angeles-born arts administrator and educator. She is the executive director of the Suzuki Association of the Americas, where she supports an international community of teachers, artists and leaders who believe in the transformative power of music. She has served as interim president and CEO of El Sistema USA, and… Continue reading Angelica Cortez

Tara Aesquivel
The arts have shaped Tara Aesquivel’s life and, through her work, she hopes to share the power of the arts with others. Tara is a classically-trained musician and earned a B.A. in Music from the University of Missouri–Kansas City. Convinced that she could have a broader impact offstage, Tara earned a Master’s degree in Arts… Continue reading Tara Aesquivel

USC Thornton hip-hop class receives guest visit from Rolling Loud festival co-founder, Tariq Cherif
The students of MUSC 320, a hip-hop course taught by USC Thornton faculty members Sean Nye and Jae Deal, left class on February 2 elated after a guest visit from Tariq Cherif. Cherif, the co-founder of Rolling Loud music festival, led a presentation and Q&A from 6-7 p.m. in Taper Hall. In the spirit of… Continue reading USC Thornton hip-hop class receives guest visit from Rolling Loud festival co-founder, Tariq Cherif

Ken Foster publishes new book in arts and cultural leadership
USC Thornton professor of practice and director of the arts leadership program Ken Foster has published the second edition of his book, Arts and Cultural Leadership: Creating Sustainable Arts Organizations. This latest edition is described as “a valuable resource both for present-day arts and cultural leaders who are working to adapt to the current environment… Continue reading Ken Foster publishes new book in arts and cultural leadership

USC Thornton members involved in new publication, “The Cambridge Companion to Krautrock”
Multiple USC Thornton members are authors in the academic publication, “The Cambridge Companion to Krautrock.” The publication, released on Oct. 20, is an introduction and analysis of the Krautrock movement in German music of the 1960s and 1970s. Thornton Musicology faculty member Sean C. Nye and keyboard studies alum Michael Krikorian (DMA ’18), an assistant… Continue reading USC Thornton members involved in new publication, “The Cambridge Companion to Krautrock”

Thornton Music Teaching & Learning program alumni win award from the National Association for Music Education
Four alumni of the USC Thornton Music Teaching & Learning program — primary investigator/author Elizabeth Palmer, (DMA ’17), Tina Huynh (MM ’14, DMA ’19), Christine D’Alexander (MM ’10, DMA ‘15) and Lisa A. Crawford (DMA ’16) — created a research group and won a competitive award from the National Association for Music Education for their pilot… Continue reading Thornton Music Teaching & Learning program alumni win award from the National Association for Music Education

Josh Kun quoted in the Los Angeles Times
USC Thornton Interim Dean Josh Kun was quoted in the Los Angeles Times in a feature about Arabic-language pop and Elyanna, a 20-year-old Palestinian-Chilean pop singer from Tarzana.

Beatriz Ilari named to the editorial board of Music Research Annual
Thornton Music Teaching & Learning Associate Professor Beatriz Ilari was named to the editorial board of Music Research Annual. The publication is the first peer-reviewed journal devoted to publishing review essays from the full range of academic disciplines that study music. Thornton Interim Dean Josh Kun is also on the editorial board, which features scholars… Continue reading Beatriz Ilari named to the editorial board of Music Research Annual

Nate Sloan featured on BBC’s The Inquiry
Assistant Professor of Musicology Nate Sloan was featured as an expert source in a new episode of BBC’s podcast The Inquiry: “Is Spotify Killing The Music Industry?”

León F. García Corona
León F. García Corona is a music scholar whose work focuses on the intersections between music, race and social justice in Mexico and among its diasporic communities in the United States. His scholarship has been published by Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Latin American Music Review, American Music, the Canadian Journal of Latin American… Continue reading León F. García Corona