Clayton Native receives Fulbright Award to Argentina

Tori Donahue, Berklee College of Music Manager of Media Relations, reports that recent Berklee Valencia graduate Andrew Skinner has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program Award this year. Before Andrew and another student from Berklee who also received an award this year, it had been 11 years since the last Berklee student was awarded with a Fulbright.  Andrew, a native of Clayton, will be recording the life stories of the surviving first generation of Nuevo Cancionero folk musicians in Mendoza, Argentina.  Nuevo Cancionero is an artistic movement that reinvents traditional Argentinian folk music to eliminate cultural boundaries, address social issues, and develop musical stories that relate to the lives of ordinary Argentinians. This music, known for its poetic lyrics, has played an important role in the country’s conscience throughout the past 60 years of social and political events. He will create an academic article as well as a series of podcasts tying together the musicians’ stories into one narrative. Skinner also plans to collaborate with Nuevo Cancionero musicians, using his audio engineering background to continue to advance their distinct musical style.