LA Phil Announces New Diversity Resident Fellowship Recipients

The LA Philharmonic has announced the recipients of their 2020 Resident Fellowships – created to increase diversity within American orchestras

The Los Angeles Philharmonic has this week announced violinist Sydney Adedamola and violist Jarrett Threadgill as the recipients of the 2020 Judith and Thomas L. Beckmen Resident Fellowship – created to invest in the highest-level emerging professional musicians and increase diversity within American orchestras.

Formed in 2018 as a development training program for outstanding musicians of historically underrepresented populations, the fellowship allows participants each year the opportunity to perform with the ensemble – and benefit from immersive orchestral mentorship, audition assistance and community engagement opportunities.

A graduate of the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music, Sydney previously held a position in the second violin section of the Seattle Symphony.

Graduating from Chapman University, the Cleveland Institute of Music and the University of Miami's Frost School of Music, Jarrett currently serves as a member of the New World Symphony.

Previous fellows include: Eduardo Rios, now First Assistant Concertmaster of the Seattle Symphony and Andrew Francois, violist with the St. Louis Symphony.

"I feel so incredibly lucky to have this opportunity ... to have the opportunity to play alongside some of the best musicians in the world and under such a renowned conductor is invaluable to my growth as a violinist - it means a lot to me that the Phil is dedicated to the pursuit of diversifying orchestras throughout the US and I am so fortunate to be a part of this effort," Sydney has this week told The Violin Channel.

"The classical music industry is surrounded by traditions and prejudices that hinder the inclusion of black and brown musicians ... the development of change is possible when institutions listen to and include minorities from the start and not just when they are asked to weigh-in on 'topics of diversity' ... making sure BIPOC are included in decision making as well as content creation is a way we can help dismantle these roadblocks," Jarrett has this week told The Violin Channel.