The University of Southern California Thornton School of Music, founded in 1884 and dedicated in 1999, is one of the premier music schools in the United States. Founded only four years after the University itself, the Thornton school is the oldest continually operating arts institution in Southern California. The School is located in the heart of the USC University Park Campus, south of downtown Los Angeles. The Trojan Shrine, better known as Tommy Trojan located in the center of University of Southern California campus. ... This article is about the region of Southern California. ... The Trojan Shrine, better known as Tommy Trojan located in the center of University of Southern California campus. ... Skyline of downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. ...

The school gets its name in honor of a $25 million gift by Flora L. Thornton in 1999. At the time, this was the largest donation to a school of music in the United States. Flora L. Thornton is the widow of Tex Thornton. ...

The USC Thornton School is noted for quality programs such as orchestral studies, opera, jazz, Film Scoring and Music industry.

Thornton is one of two universities in the country to offer an undergraduate program in Music Industry. Thornton is one of only two schools that offer a comprehensive program in Scoring for Television and Film. It also has a unique program in studio guitar performance. The music industry is the industry that creates, performs, promotes, and preserves music. ...

Notable faculty

Cello

• Ronald Leonard
• Gregor Piatigorsky
• Eleonore Schoenfeld
• Peter Stumpf
• Nathaniel Rosen
• Ralph Kirshbaum (beginning Fall 2008)

Ronald Leonard is an American cellist. ... Piatigorsky in 1945 Gregor Piatigorsky (April 17, 1903 – August 6, 1976) was a Ukrainian cellist well known in his time. ... Eleonore Schoenfeld (1926 – January 1, 2007) is considered one of the most influential cellists of the 20th century. ... Peter Stumpf may refer to any number of individuals: Peter Stumpp, tried as a werewolf in 1589. ... Nathaniel Nick Rosen is an American cellist, former gold prize winner at the International Tchaikovsky Competition, and faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music. ... Ralph Henry Kirshbaum (born April 4, 1946) is an American cellist currently living in England. ...

Classical guitar

• Pepe Romero
• Scott Tennant
• James Smith
• William Kanengiser
• Brian Head

Pepe Romero (from [1]) Pepe Romero (born March 8, 1944 in Malaga, Spain) is a world-renowned classical and flamenco guitarist. ... Scott Tennant is an American classical guitarist. ... James Smith is the name of: Americans: James Smith (frontiersman) (ca. ...

Composition

• Buddy Baker
• Elmer Bernstein
• Bruce Broughton
• Ingolf Dahl
• Jerry Goldsmith
• Morten Lauridsen
• Marty Paich
• David Raksin
• Miklós Rózsa
• Frank Ticheli

Norman Buddy Baker was a film composer who composed many of Walt Disneys Classic Films, like The Apple Dumpling Gang (film), The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, The Shaggy D.A., and The Million Dollar Duck. ... Elmer Bernstein (pronounced Bern-steen[1]) (April 4, 1922 – August 18, 2004) was an Academy and two-time Golden Globe award winning American film score composer. ... Bruce Broughton (born March 8, 1945 in Los Angeles, California) is a film, video game, and television soundtrack composer who has composed several highly acclaimed soundtracks over his extensive career, including Homeward Bound and Silverado, as well as the video game Heart of Darkness (game). ... Ingolf Dahl (b. ... Jerrald King Jerry Goldsmith (February 10, 1929 – July 21, 2004) was an American film score composer from Los Angeles, California. ... Morten Lauridsen (born February 27, 1943 in Colfax, Washington) is an American composer with Danish roots. ... Martin Louis Paich (b. ... David Raksin (August 4, 1912 - August 9, 2004) was an American composer of music born in Philadelphia, PA. With over 100 film scores and 300 TV scores to his credit, he became known as the Grandfather of Film Music. ... Miklós Rózsa (IPA: ) or Miklos Rozsa (April 18, 1907 - July 27, 1995) was a Hungarian-born composer, best known for his film scores, most notably the score to the 1959 epic Ben-Hur. ... Frank Ticheli (born Jan 21, 1958 in Monroe, Louisiana) is an American composer of orchestral, choral, chamber, and concert band works. ...

Jazz

• John Clayton
• Peter Erskine
• Russell Ferrante
• Bruce Forman
• Alphonso Johnson
• Vince Mendoza
• Alan Pasqua
• Bill Watrous

... Peter Erskine (born June 5, 1954) is an American jazz drummer. ... Russell Keith Ferrante is a jazz pianist from San Jose California who is a founding member of the group Yellowjackets. ... Alphonso Johnson (born 1951 in Philadelphia, PA) is a jazz bassist who has been influential since the early 1970s. ... Vince Mendoza (1961 -) is a music arranger and composer. ... Alan Pasqua (born June 28, 1952 in New Jersey) is a jazz pianist and composer who co-composed the CBS Evening News Theme. ... Bill Watrous (undated photograph) William Russell Watrous III is a professional jazz trombonist. ...

Piano

• Daniel Pollack

Viola

• William Primrose
• Donald McInnes

William Primrose (August 23, 1903 - May 1, 1982) was a Scottish violist and teacher, probably the best known viola player of his time. ...

Violin

• Midori Goto
• Jascha Heifetz
• Robert Lipsett
• Alice Schoenfeld
• Hagai Shaham
• Endre Granat

Midori Goto (五嶋 みどり; Gotö Midori) (born October 25, 1971 in Osaka) is a Japanese violinist. ... Jascha Heifetz (February 2 [O.S. January 20] 1901 – December 10, 1987) was a Jewish Lithuanian-born American violin virtuoso. ... Robert Lipsett is a renowned violin teacher in Los Angeles, California. ... Hagai Shaham Hagai Shaham is an Israeli violin virtuoso. ... Endre Granat, is a violinist who has toured and/or recorded with numerous arists such as Earth, Wind, and Fire, Lionel Richie, Barbara Streisand, Yanni, Natalie Cole, Dionne Warwick, and Ricky Martin. ...

Notable alumni

• Michael Abels, composer
• Herb Alpert, trumpeter and co-founder of A&M Records
• Christophe Beck, film and television composer
• Marco Beltrami, Film score composer
• Bruce Broughton, composer
• Harold Budd, ambient/avant-garde composer
• Roberto Cani, violinist
• William Edward Childs, jazz pianist and composer
• Lori A. Custodero, music educator
• Tamar Davis, R&B singer
• Martin Denny, creator of exotica music
• Gigi Drums, percussionist
• William Eddins, conductor
• Taylor Eigsti, jazz pianist
• Grant Gershon, conductor and pianist
• Rod Gilfry, opera singer
• Renee Elise Goldsberry, actress
• Jerry Goldsmith, Film score composer
• Donald Grantham, composer and music educator
• Maria Grenfell, composer
• Lionel Hampton, jazz musician
• Marilyn Horne, mezzo soprano
• James Horner, Film score composer
• James Newton Howard, Film score composer
• Paul Jackson, Jr., fusion guitarist
• Tommy Johnson, tubist on film scores
• Jerry Kirkbride, clarinetist
• Morten Lauridsen, composer
• Christopher Lennertz, film and television composer
• Charles Lloyd, jazz musician
• Bear McCreary, television composer
• Ronald Muldrow, jazz musician
• Christopher Parkening, classical guitarist
• P. Q. Phan, composer of contemporary classical music
• Elizabeth Pitcairn, violinist
• Harvey Pittel, saxophonist
• Basil Poledouris, Film score composer
• Brian Ralston, Film score composer
• Robert Ralston, pianist and organist
• Lee Ritenour, session musician
• Leroy Robertson, composer and music educator
• Douglas Romayne, film and television composer
• Nathaniel Rosen, cellist
• Patrice Rushen, R&B singer, songwriter, composer, and pianist
• Stefan Sanderling, conductor
• William Schmidt, composer
• Garry Schyman, composer for film, television, and video games
• Tom Scott, session musician
• Lya Stern, violinist
• Thomas Stevens, trumpeter, composer, and educator
• Tomas Svoboda, composer and music educator
• Salli Terri, singer and songwriter
• Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor and pianist
• Fiona Thompson, cellist
• Zeynep Üçbaşaran, pianist
• Walter Werzowa, composer and founder of Musikvergnuegen
• Andrew York, classical guitarist-composer
• Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, Guitar Quartet
• Calder Quartet, String Quartet
• Derek Polischuk, Professor of Piano, Michigan State University

Michael Abels (born 1962) is an American composer. ... Herbert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American musician most associated with the group variously known as Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass or as Herb Alperts Tijuana Brass or just TJB for short. ... A&M redirects here. ... Christophe Beck interviewed on a Buffy The Vampire Slayer DVD featurette Christophe Beck (born 1972 in Montreal, Canada), also credited as Chris Beck, is a Canadian film and television composer. ... Marco Beltrami is a musical composer for motion pictures. ... A film score is a set of musical compositions written to accompany a film. ... Bruce Broughton (born March 8, 1945 in Los Angeles, California) is a film, video game, and television soundtrack composer who has composed several highly acclaimed soundtracks over his extensive career, including Homeward Bound and Silverado, as well as the video game Heart of Darkness (game). ... Harold Budd (born May 24, 1936) is an American ambient/avant-garde composer. ... Ambient music is a musical genre in which sound is more important than notes. ... A work similar to Marcel Duchamps Fountain Avant garde (written avant-garde) is a French phrase, one of many French phrases used by English speakers. ... Roberto Salvatore Cani (born October 17, 1967) is an Italian violinist. ... William Edward Childs (best known as “Billy Childs”) is a composer and jazz pianist from Los Angeles. ... Lori A. Custodero, D.M.A. is part of the faculty at the Columbia University Teachers College. ... For the R&B coloratura, see Tamar Braxton. ... R&B redirects here. ... Martin Denny (April 10, 1911 - March 2, 2005) is universally known as the founder and reigning king of exotica music, a type of big band music with Latin rhythms and overtones of Pacific Ocean culture that is largely scorned by critics but was extremely popular in the 1950s and 1960s. ... Martin Dennys breakthrough album, Exotica Exotica is a musical genre, named after the 1957 Martin Denny album of the same title, popular during the late 1950s to mid 1960s typically with the suburban set who came of age during World War II. The musical colloquialism exotica means tropical ersatz... Gigi Drums is an innovative and exceptional female drummer, percussionist, and composer who created the Hippopotamus style of music, which is based on patterns of five. ... William Eddins William Eddins (born December 9, 1964 in Buffalo, New York) is an American pianist and conductor. ... Two-Time Grammy Nominee Taylor Eigsti (born September 24, 1984) is an American jazz pianist, most associated with post-bop. ... Rod Gilfry is a leading American opera baritone. ... Renee Elise Goldsberry (born January 2, 1971) is an American actress, singer and songwriter. ... Jerrald King Jerry Goldsmith (February 10, 1929 – July 21, 2004) was an American film score composer from Los Angeles, California. ... Donald Grantham (1947- ) is an American composer and music educator. ... Maria Grenfell (born 1969) is an Australian/New Zealand composer. ... Lionel Hampton with George W. Bush Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908, Louisville, Kentucky – August 31, 2002 New York City), was a jazz bandleader and percussionist. ... Marilyn Horne The American opera singer Marilyn Horne (born January 16, 1934) is a mezzo soprano who is particularly associated with the music of Rossini and Handel. ... A mezzo-soprano (meaning medium or middle soprano in Italian) is a female singer whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above (i. ... James Roy Horner (born August 14, 1953) is an American composer of orchestral and film music. ... This article is about James Howard, the composer. ... Paul Jackson, Jr. ... Jazz fusion (or jazz-rock fusion or fusion) is a musical genre that merges elements of jazz with other styles of music, particularly pop, rock, folk, reggae, funk, metal, country, R&B, hip hop, electronic music and world music. ... Tommy Johnson was a session musician best known for his work on the Jaws theme. ... For other uses, see Tuba (disambiguation). ... Morten Lauridsen (born February 27, 1943 in Colfax, Washington) is an American composer with Danish roots. ... Christopher Lennertz, a new name amungst gaming. ... Charles Lloyd with Reuben Rogers and Eric Harland, Santa Barbara, 2006 Charles Lloyd on stage with Billy Higgins Charles Lloyd (March 15, 1938-) is an American jazz musician. ... Bear McCreary (b. ... Ronald Muldrow (born February 2, 1949 in Chicago and died January 31, 2007 in Los Angeles) was a Jazz Musician. ... Christopher Parkening (born 14 December 1947) is an American classical guitarist. ... In the broadest sense, contemporary music is any music being written in the present day. ... Elizabeth Pitcairn, born December 5, 1973 into a musical Bryn Athyn, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania family, began the violin at age three and performed her first concerto with orchestra at 14. ... Harvey Pittel (b. ... Basil Poledouris (Greek: Βασίλης Πολεδούρης) (August 21, 1945 - November 8, 2006) was an American film composer. ... Brian Ralston (b. ... Robert Ralston (born July 2, 1939 in Montebello, California) is an American pianist and organist perhaps best known from televisions The Lawrence Welk Show. ... Lee Mack Captain Fingers Ritenour (born January 11, 1952) is a prominent session musician, and recording artist. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Sideman. ... Leroy Robertson (December 21, 1896 – July 25, 1971) was an American composer and music educator. ... Douglas Romayne (born 1974) is an American composer of television and film. ... Nathaniel Nick Rosen is an American cellist, former gold prize winner at the International Tchaikovsky Competition, and faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music. ... Album cover of Straight from the Heart Patrice Louise Rushen (born September 30, 1954 in Los Angeles, California) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, composer, and pianist. ... Categories: ... The album The Very Best of Tom Scott was released in March 2006 by Verve records. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Thomas Stevens (born Atascadero, California, July 29, 1938) trumpeter, composer, and author, was principal trumpet with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra from 1972 to 1999. ... Salli C. Terri (September 3, 1922, London, Ontario, Canada - May 5, 1996, Long Beach, California) was a singer and songwriter. ... Michael Tilson Thomas (born December 21, 1944), nicknamed MTT, is an American conductor, pianist and composer. ... Fiona Thompson began studying cello in her native England at the age of seven. ... Zeynep Ucbasaran is an award winning Turkish pianist. ... Walter Thomas Werzowa is a composer and member of the 1980s Austrian sampling band Edelweiss. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Andrew York Andrew York is an American classical guitarist and composer. ... The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet (LAGQ) consists of John Dearman, William Kanengiser, Scott Tennant and Matthew Greif (who replaced Andrew York towards the end of 2006). ...

See also

• Colburn School

The R.D. Colburn School of Performing Arts and Conservatory of Music is a music, dance, and drama school located in downtown Los Angeles adjacent to the Museum of Contemporary Art and across the street from the Walt Disney Concert Hall. ...

External links

• USC Thornton School of Music
• USC Polish Music Center website
• Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television website
• Music Library of the University of Southern California