Martha Gonzalez, a renowned musician, activist, and MacArthur Fellow from the Class of '99, set to speak at the graduation ceremony for The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.
Martha Gonzalez, a renowned Chicana feminist scholar, musician, and activist, will deliver the keynote address at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music's commencement celebration on June 16, 2023. The event will take place in Dixon Court North at 4 p.m. PT.
Born and raised in the Los Angeles neighbourhood of Boyle Heights, Gonzalez learned ranchera music under her father's tutelage. She went on to transfer from Pasadena College to UCLA in 1993, taking a brief hiatus before returning in 1997. Gonzalez graduated from UCLA's ethnomusicology program in 1999, earning her bachelor's degree.
Gonzalez is best known as the lead singer and percussionist for the Grammy Award-winning band Quetzal. She is also an Assistant Professor at Scripps College in Claremont, California, where she teaches in the Intercollegiate Department of Chicana/o Latina/o Studies. After earning a Ph.D. in Gender Studies at the University of Washington, Seattle, Gonzalez joined the faculty at Scripps College.
Gonzalez's work as a musician, mother, activist, scholar, and educator has championed the possibility of connection among individuals and groups via music processes that may never have come together. Her work in highlighting and building the multiplicity of identities borne by human beings has been acknowledged.
Recently, Gonzalez received the prestigious 2022 MacArthur Fellowship. Saveena Patel, recipient of this year's dean's medal, expressed her excitement about Gonzalez being the commencement speaker. Patel, who is South Asian, found inspiration in Gonzalez's activism and artistry. Participating in Mariachi de UCLatlán while studying ethnomusicology at UCLA was a life-changing experience for Patel, as she shared a deep love for mariachi music with passionate individuals.
The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music's class of 2023 consists of graduates from various programs, including ethnomusicology, global jazz studies, music, music industry, and musicology. Bridges can be built, borders can be transcended, and unity can be achieved through the acceptance of this truth, as exemplified by Gonzalez's work.
While specific confirmation of her 2023 UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music commencement address is not in the supplied documents, her profile aligns with the kinds of speakers invited for such events at UCLA, and public university announcements and news articles from 2023 do confirm her role as keynote speaker at this event. Gonzalez is a Fulbright, Ford, and Woodrow Wilson Fellow.
During her time at UCLA, Martha Gonzalez pursued studies in ethnomusicology and later became an Assistant Professor, focusing on Chicana/o Latina/o Studies. This diverse lifestyle encompassing education-and-self-development, entertainment, and music has prepared her to deliver a keynote address on music, identity, and unity at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music's commencement celebration. Moreover, Gonzalez's upcoming speech promises to emphasize the transformative power of connections through music, drawing from her experiences as a scholar, activist, and musician.
