The Mike Curb Foundation has announced a $500,000 gift to Occidental College’s new John Branca Institute for Music. The gift establishes the Mike Curb Endowed Program in Popular Music History, which will enhance the Institute’s curricular offerings by providing a range of guest speakers and career development events to Occidental students and alumni, as well as the naming of recognized music professionals to the Linda and Mike Curb Fellowship.
“We are thrilled that the Mike Curb Foundation is joining forces with the Branca Institute in its inaugural year,” said David Kasunic, director of the John Branca Institute for Music and associate professor of music. “This gift rightly emphasizes the study of the history of popular music as a prerequisite to creating and understanding popular music today, and that the people who know this history best are the experienced music professionals who have been part of this history.”
The gift will enable the College to bring to campus highly accomplished music professionals with expertise in both music history and the music industry, and will support related programming in perpetuity. In particular, the Curb Fellowship will allow the Branca Institute to capitalize on the tremendous pool of knowledge and talent in the Southern California music industry by bringing that talent into Occidental’s classrooms and music workspaces. Renowned music producer Michael Lloyd, the inaugural Curb Fellow for the 2025-26 academic year, produced 1970s teen idols such as the Osmonds and Shaun Cassidy and supervised the music soundtrack for the 1987 film “Dirty Dancing,” including production of the hit “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life.”
The fellowship will also allow for a greater range of participants in the Branca Institute, especially those with music industry experience but without academic backgrounds. The Curb Fellow will give talks, masterclasses and workshops on practical elements of popular music-making and history, and, by connecting with alumni during networking events, will reinforce the Institute’s commitment to Occidental students beyond their graduation.
Additionally, the endowed program will enhance the Music Department’s ability to teach, advise and critique popular music as part of its fast-growingmusic program, which embeds music theory and practice within a broader liberal arts curriculum. Students develop an understanding of music as a creative work, as a cultural and historical expression and as a performance medium. “Billboard” Magazine has repeatedly ranked Occidental as a Top Music Business School, praising the College for a music program that will solidly position graduates for careers in an increasingly complex music industry.
Curb’s endowment stems from his longstanding involvement in philanthropic activities and also from his close personal friendship with John Branca. He is the former acting governor and lieutenant governor of California, a GRAMMY Award-winning record producer, a “Billboard” record producer of the year and a BMI multi-award-winning songwriter. Curb continues to preside over his own independent record company, which he founded in 1963 and which has launched the careers of numerous stars; Curb artists have received 33 GRAMMY Awards. He has received a star on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles and on the Music City Walk of Fame in Nashville. He has also partnered with the GRAMMY Museum for numerous programs and initiatives.
Join Occidental College to celebrate the establishment of the institute at an on-campus concert on Oct. 18. Members of the Occidental College Music Department will perform the greatest hits from Branca's most renowned clients, including Michael Jackson, Carlos Santana, The Bee Gees, The Beach Boys, and Rodgers & Hammerstein. Tickets are available here.
