Free | No ticket required

Mead Witter School of Music Changemaker Series
A celebration of individuals who help society challenge and expand the boundaries of music

The School of Music is partnering with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra to welcome one of their guest artists each year for our Changemaker Series. On October 10, WCO is presenting a concert titled “Convergence.” This concert will feature one of Patrice Rushen’s works, Fanfare and Fantasie, alongside works by other contemporary composers, for their recording series Musical Landscapes in Color.

In this Changemaker Series event, Rushen will talk about her work from the previous evening and discuss aspects of her stunning career, from being one of the world’s top jazz pianists to her work as the first female music director for such top award shows as the Grammy Awards, the Emmy Awards, the People’s Choice Awards, and the NAACP Image Awards.

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Patrice Rushen is an award-winning musician and composer who is also one of the most sought after artists in the music industry. She is a classically trained pianist who originally found success in the 70’s and 80’s with her signature fusion of jazz, pop and R&B. During this era, she composed and recorded the hit song, “Forget Me Nots,” which has been frequently covered and sampled by other artists. 

Rushen is also a four-time, Grammy nominee who has composed scores for movies and television. She has been the first female musical director for many of the entertainment industry’s top award shows, which include the Grammy Awards, the Emmy Awards, the People’s Choice Awards, the NAACP Image Awards and HBO’s “Comic Relief V.” 

Considered one of the world’s top jazz pianists, she has performed with many artists. Among them such esteemed names as Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, Prince, Nancy Wilson, Ndugu Chancler, Carlos Santana, Christian McBride and Lee Ritenour. She is a record producer and an award-winning composer of symphonic music, some of which was commissioned by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Rushen is the ”Ambassador of Artistry In Education” at Boston’s Berklee College of Music,  and has been the Chair of the Popular Music Program at USC’s Thornton School of Music from 2013 till 2023. 

Rushen also spends time working with the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, NARAS “Grammy In The Schools” program and other organizations dedicated to establishing music education and mentorship programs for underprivileged youth.