Booth Hall, the home of Occidental’s music department, is undergoing a renovation process that will transform the building into state-of-the-art classroom, rehearsal and performance space for students and faculty. After breaking ground in Spring 2026, the renovations are now well underway, according to director of the John Branca Institute for Music and chair and professor of music David Kasunic.
Kasunic said the goals of the renovations are threefold: to increase the number of practice rooms and faculty offices, to transform the existing classrooms of Booth 204 and 208 into multi-purpose spaces and, most crucially, to improve the acoustic isolation and natural lighting throughout the building.
“We need to use the classroom as rehearsal spaces for our ensembles as well as instructional spaces, and then we will also be able to turn the rooms into an event space because of its lighting and sound capabilities,” Kasunic said.
Kasunic said the plan is for Booth 204 to be converted into a classroom and rehearsal space, which will double as a musical performance venue that can be utilized by students, faculty and visiting artists to showcase their work with the help of an advanced sound system.
According to Kasunic, Booth 208 will also be utilized as a multi-use space, and will serve as a sound stage where artists can perform their music in an area visually and acoustically linked to the Music Production Center.
“That [renovation] is very exciting for us, because not only does it allow us to record these ensembles, it will now allow our students to be involved in the engineering and recording process, a skill set that we haven’t been able to give them because we haven’t had a space like this,” Kasunic said.
According to Mason Toevs (sophomore), the renovation plans were created with the intention of matching the quality of the college’s musical environment to the standard of work students are producing.
“The environment you play music in can impact the tone, and the tone can impact how the music comes across […] and it should pull us into a sense of community,” Toevs said.
According to Mikatrin Heynen (junior), under the leadership of Désirée LaVertu, Director of Choral and Vocal Activities and resident professor of music, Glee Club and other groups are utilizing Herrick Chapel as their rehearsal space while the renovations are completed.
“Our rehearsal room in Booth was not set up for a choir rehearsal,” Heynen said. “With the new space they’re building, Desiree helped design and talk with the architects about making it more choir-friendly.”
Heynen said the new spaces in Booth will improve the musical experience on campus for all students.
“The Oxy music community is very open to whatever you want to get out of it,” Heynen said. “It’s given me a lot of opportunities as a non-music major to do really awesome things like be in Glee and go on tour. The people here really want you to succeed.”
Kasunic said the renovations will also open up more accessible offices, since the music program welcomes nearly 40 extra staff members each year in addition to full-time faculty. He said there will also be a communal lobby space that can be utilized for further collaboration efforts among students and staff.
“It’s all about bringing the various components of our program in dialogue with one another,” Kasunic said. “It creates a really strong sense of community, and I think that the biggest message is that music requires collaboration, it requires communication, and it requires showing up and being ready.”
Kai Frazier (junior) said the music department is unique when it comes to the ability to hone one’s artistic craft in a collective environment.
“It really feels collaborative — everything is peer-feedback based,” Frazier said. “I’ve learned to unlock my potential. Especially in an artistic field, a lot of it is self-expression, and finding out how to make that expression something that can be shared,” Frazier said.
According to Frazier, the renovations will help prepare majors for pursuing careers in music, as well as expanding on existing relationships with the greater Los Angeles musical scene.
“Especially in the music industry, it’s important to be outgoing and be able to make connections and understand how to interact with lots of different people,” Frazier said.
Heynen said the resources available make being a part of the music program fulfilling, but so do the friendships that are formed in the creative process.
“I think the music department is a hidden gem of Oxy, in terms of how not many people know just how compassionate we are with one another,” Heynen said. “We are all having these different college experiences, but we share this love of music which is just so beautiful.”
Frazier said he will always look back on his time in the program with gratitude for the ways it allowed him to embrace his creativity.
“Music feels like a fundamental way of connecting with people — It feels so central to our soul and our humanity in general,” Frazier said. “What would we be without it?”
Contact Athya Lodhia Paramesh at paramesh@oxy.edu
