Solange has been named the first scholar-in-residence at USC Thornton School of Music and announced her three-year residency at the music school on Monday (Oct. 13).
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Solange will teach a course in collaboration with her multidisciplinary institution Saint Heron, USC Thornton dean Jason King and other faculty members on music curation. She will also host student-focused conversations and workshops (including one dedicated to “The Making of Eldorado Ballroom,” the series she hosted at Walt Disney Concert Hall last October), and help faculty build long-term frameworks for Thornton during her custom-designed residency, which kicks off this week, the LA Times reported.
Launching in fall 2027, the music curation course will “explore the process of constructing curatorial frameworks alongside the context, craft and creation of musical landscapes,” according to USC, and will be tentatively titled “Records of Discover: Methodologies for Music and Cultural Curatorial Practices.” She will also participate in USC’s forthcoming symposium by discussing women in classical work, such as composer Julia Perry.
“For decades now, I’ve watched the evolution of music and music curation, and I feel like I have something adequate to add to the conversation,” the Grammy-winning artist told the Times. “I feel really inspired by the idea of my 15-year-old self being able to have someone sort of walk me through the footsteps of what I was about to embark on. So if I can, in any role, be a vessel of guidance, it really just sort of warms my heart that I am given the opportunity to be in that space…. Being able to help students navigate what that is for them is like a dream job.”
Solange is also the second member to be invited to join the Dean’s Creative Vanguard Program, joining her frequent collaborator Raphael Saadiq who became the inaugural member in December. The Dean’s Creative Vanguard Program, which officially launched this year under the direction of King, is designed to foster creative interaction between distinguished artists and Thornton students. The initiative includes masterclasses, workshops, private instruction and public discussions.
