Music school faculty and staff granted Chancellor's Arts Initiative Funds
UCLA's Chancellor's Council on the Arts and Office for Research and Creative Activities Fund Arts Research Projects
The Chancellor's Council on the Arts (CCoA) and UCLA's Office for Research and Creative Activities (ORCA) have recently funded various arts research projects that support creative and scholarly work at UCLA. These initiatives aim to inspire innovation and creativity, break down barriers, build empathy, and connect across fields of study, cultures, and attitudes.
The CCoA is committed to advancing the role of the arts as a vital part of the rich and diverse UCLA experience. Through initiatives like the Chancellor's Arts Initiative and GO ARTS UCLA, they strive to integrate cultural storytelling and experiential practices into the university's fabric.
One of the funded projects is a study of a folk tradition of Northeast Thailand led by Supeena Adler from the Department of Ethnomusicology. The project, titled "Researching, Teaching, and Performing a Folk Tradition of Northeast Thailand," will document the specific folk tradition, acquire instruments and costumes, and offer UCLA students the opportunity to explore it through her Music of Thailand Ensemble course.
Another project, led by Lily Chen-Hafteck, a Music Education Professor, will investigate the benefits of classes designed to teach elementary school students in the Los Angeles Unified School District about the music and cultures of their classmates. The aim is to provide 30 teachers with training and teaching materials designed to increase students' cultural understanding and appreciation, reducing racial prejudice.
The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music had three faculty members receive arts research grants. Details about the specific projects of these faculty members were not available, but it is clear that their work extends to innovative interdisciplinary activities in performance, creative expression, and research tied to the arts at UCLA.
The UCLA Library will co-sponsor an exhibition titled "Celebrating Black Music in Los Angeles" with the Ethnomusicology Archive. This will be the first large-scale exhibition at UCLA to present a comprehensive look at the city's Black music, covering various musical genres, including jazz, gospel, rap, and film scores. The exhibition will feature both well-known figures and those often excluded from history, such as Black women musicians and composers, music educators, and owners of important music venues.
The grants totaled $150,000 in funding. GO ARTS UCLA, an online portal launched by the CCoA, highlights the role of the arts at UCLA and their place within L.A.'s cultural ecosystem. The CCoA has expanded its membership to include Darnell Hunt, May Hong HaDuong, Cindy Fan, and David Yoo.
The research grants demonstrate the power of the arts within the UCLA community and throughout the world. For more comprehensive information about particular funded projects, one would typically look at UCLA’s official announcements or the offices’ project portfolios. However, the available info confirms that these bodies play a key role in backing compelling arts research at UCLA.
- In addition to the funded arts research projects, the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music offers online education opportunities for students interested in exploring various music genres and cultures.
- Beyond traditional arts research, UCLA's Chancellor's Council on the Arts supports innovative initiatives that focus on self-development, such as Lily Chen-Hafteck's project investigating the benefits of cross-cultural music and entertainment education for elementary school students.
