The
Brian May Trust is a charitable
testamentary trust established under the
will of the late Brian May,
Australia’s leading film composer.
Mr May passed away on April 25 1997.
The Trust was created to provide a
scholarship to promising Australian film
composers (ordinarily resident in
Australia) to study film-scoring for nine
months at the University of Southern
California (USC).
Under the will, the Trustees of the
Trust are Brian May's Solicitor, Mr Rob
Ffrench and his accountant, Mr Bill
Vanderstaay and Mr Michael Di Stasio is
responsible for the selection process.
The Trustees have determined that the
scholarship will be provided for tuition
in film-scoring at the USC’s
Thornton School of Music in the course
known as the ‘Advanced Studies
Certificate in Scoring for Motion
Pictures and Television’.
The Brian May Trust Scholarship was first awarded for the 2003 Academic Year and will continue to be awarded biennially.
The Advanced Studies Certificate in Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television
The USC scoring for motion pictures and television program is a nine (9) month intensive course of study.
Students must work long hours studying scores, screening films, composing music, producing recording sessions and taking classes with and talking to the faculty and guests from the professional film music industry.
The course is designed for students who hold a Bachelor of Music in Composition or its equivalent.
Thornton School of Music Entrance Requirements
Curriculum Requirements
A total of 30 units must be completed to satisfy course requirements. The course covers the following units:
Important Dates for the 2005 Scholarship
1st September 2004: Scholarship applications forms available.
1st December 2004: Applications close 5pm (under no circumstances will late applications be considered.)
1st February 2005: The short-listed candidates will be notified.
31st March 2005: The successful candidate will be notified in writing.
Scholarship Location
The Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California
The Thornton School of Music was founded in 1884 and has since become the centre of higher education in the western United States, ranking among the top four schools of music in the nation. Thornton is consistently ranked within the top 1% of music schools and conservatories and offers a conservatory-quality music education within a larger University campus.
Situated in the heart of Los Angeles, the school offers students courses in instrumental and vocal performance, jazz, early music, conducting, composition, film and television scoring, music industry, music education, recording arts, pedagogy, choral and sacred music, conducting and opera.
It also offers a range of music minors and general interest courses for students majoring in other disciplines.
Thornton is a leading producer of live music performances in Southern California with more than 500 formal and informal concerts and recitals presented on campus each year. The school regularly presents well-known visiting artists and scholars in master classes, workshops, lectures, seminars and in performance, assuring students the broadest performing experience.
More information about the Thornton
School of Music is available online at www.usc.edu/music.
Scholarship Value - 2005 / 2006
The Scholarship value and method of payment is determined by the Trustees in their absolute discretion.
The maximum value of the Scholarship for the 2005-2006 academic year will be AUD$80,000.00 and will pay for or contribute to:
Please note that the successful candidate may be required to purchase additional materials dependant on the individual lecturer's requirements. Additionally the successful candidate may incur incidental additional expenses unrelated to the course and must be able to fun them.
Scholarship Eligibility and Application Criteria
Scholarship Eligibility
1. Applicants must be ordinarily resident in Australia.
The Trustees have determined that for the purposes of the Scholarship applicants will be deemed to be ordinarily resident in Australia if:
1. the applicant has his or her permanent home in Australia; or
2. Australia is the country of his or her permanent home notwithstanding that he or she is temporarily absent from Australia.
To be considered to be ordinarily
resident, applicants must show an
overriding element of permanent residence
in Australia , to be contrasted with a
place where he or she stays only casually
or intermittently.
The applicant will be deemed not to be
ordinarily resident in Australia if they
reside in Australia for a special or
non-permanent purpose only.
Australian or foreign citizenship is not
necessarily a determining factor.
The Trustees will decide in their
absolute discretion whether applicants
are deemed to be ordinarily resident in
Australia based upon evidence provided by
them.
2. Applicants must hold a Bachelor’s Degree from a University, preferably in music composition. The Thornton School of Music (the “School”) prefers a Bachelor’s Degree in Composition specifically, however candidates with sufficient coursework in Composition and/or professional experience will be considered by the School.
Applicants acknowledge that while the Thornton School of Music has indicated that candidates with sufficient course work in composition and/or professional experience will be considered by the school, this decision is solely at the discretion of the Thornton School of Music and will not be subject to review.
3. The successful applicant will also need a valid passport, an F-1 student Visa to the United States and a completed non-immigrant visa application (A student Visa information package will be forwarded to the successful applicant).
4. International students on student visas must be registered as full-time students with the USC. This will be arranged by the Office for International Services and the departmental advisor.
Application Criteria
Only completed applications on the
current official application form will be
considered. The Application form is
available on this
site.
Selection Procedure
All applications will be received and collated by Gail Allison at ffrench.commercial lawyers on behalf of the Trustees of the Brian May Trust. Applications will then be forwarded to Mr Michael Di Stasio, the Selection Coordinator, who has the responsibility for selecting the successful candidate.
Mr Di Stasio will review applications and nominate a shortlist of approximately five (5) applicants.
The short-listed applicants will be required to complete a USC Application for Graduate Admission and a Thornton School of Music Supplementary Application. Short-listed applicants may also be required to attend an interview at the Gold Coast Queensland at their own expense. In cases of proven hardship alternative arrangements may be permitted at the discretion of the Trustees.
As part of the interview process, the Selection Coordinator will determine how committed the applicants are to film-scoring and to the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California. The Selection Coordinator will also ask the applicant to talk about their musical background, interests, ambitions and their knowledge of the benefactor, Mr Brian May and his works.
Following these interviews, the successful applicant will be selected and submitted to the Thornton School of Music for confirmation.
The Trustees reserve the right to submit more than one applicant depending on the requirements of the Thornton School of Music, and to seek the assistance of Thornton to make the final selection in such manner as they deem appropriate.
The successful candidate will be notified by the Trustees on or before the 31st March 2005
Biography of Michael Di Stasio, the Selection Coordinator
Michael Di Stasio was born in
Melbourne on 5th October 1958.
He holds a Bachelor of Education
(Creative Arts) from the Melbourne State
College; a Master of Education from
Griffith University; is a Member of the
Australian College of Education; a Member
of the Institute for Electronic and
Electrical Engineers; and a Member of the
Australian Guild of Screen Composers. His
current doctoral research work is in the
field of artifical reality and music
technology entitled, "The Virtual
Conductor".
Mr Di Stasio has extensive experience in
teaching in the primary, secondary,
tertiary, international and industry
training levels. He is a professional
musician and his skills encompass
performing as a Concert clarinettist and
Jazz saxophonist, composing, arranging,
and theatre-restaurant entertainment.
Mr Di Stasio was employed as a
contract/sessional lecturer and tutor at
Griffith University from 1991 until 2002
teaching in the Educational Training,
Information Technology and Performing
Arts courses, including Film and
Television Music Scoring, Film and
Television Music Analysis, Arranging and
Orchestration and Instrumental Studies.
Mr Di Stasio has also been active as an
independent consultant and guest speaker
in the education and arts area,
particularly in the Asia/Pacific region.
Mr Di Stasio is currently pursuing an
academic and management career at
tertiary institutes in Tokyo.
Award and Acceptance
1. The Trustees will notify the successful applicant (the “awardee”) in writing of their selection.
2. On notification of the scholarship award, the awardee must then provide the Trustees with written acceptance of the scholarship within fourteen (14) days of being notified of their selection.
3. The awardee will also be asked to provide a statutory declaration and this declaration must include the following:
4. The awardee will be required to immediately submit all USC application requirements for processing, including immigration requirements. These include the following:
5. The Trustees have the power to withdraw the scholarship from an awardee in their absolute discretion should the awardee: