Colburn School Names Nate Zeisler Dean For Community Initiatives
Sel Kardan, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Colburn School, announced the appointment of Nate Zeisler to the position of Dean for Community Initiatives. Zeisler, who has held the position Director of Community Engagement at Colburn School since 2010, will continue to direct the school's community engagement and career development initiatives under the umbrella of a newly formed Center for Innovation and Community Impact.
String Players From Underrepresented Communities Announced As 1st Class Of New Fellowship
Four top-tier post-graduate string musicians from underrepresented communities have been announced as the first class of The Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship, a program designed to increase diversity in American orchestras. Launched in August 2018, the groundbreaking program was conceived by a partnership of Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (ICYOLA), the country's largest African-American-majority youth orchestra; Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO), one of the world's leading chamber orchestras; and USC Thornton School of Music, one of the country's top music programs. Violinist Sydney Adedamola, violinist Ayrton Pisco, violist Bradley Parrimore and cellist Juan-Salvador Carrasco will receive a 360-degree view of a career as an orchestral musician in this rigorous two-year training program. A key pillar of The Fellowship is artistic mentoring the Fellows receive from LACO musicians and USC Thornton faculty. In turn, Fellows will actively mentor, teach, and guide young ICYOLA musicians. Among the other opportunities provided are extensive performance and rehearsal experience; compensation, benefits, housing; and unprecedented support to prepare participants to win auditions in professional American orchestras. The Fellowship was developed to address the fact that less than 5% of America's orchestra workforce is African American, Hispanic or Native American, according to a 2016 report on diversity issued by the League of American Orchestras.