School of Business Gazette

Wisconsin MBA Student Wins Grammy

Derek Kwan, a first-year MBA student with the Bolz Center for Arts Administration, won a Grammy last month in the category of Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album.

Kwan won for “Bebo De Cuba” featuring Bebo Valdes (Calle 54 Records), for which he was associate producer while working at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City before coming to the School of Business. He also co-produced another album nominated in the same category, “Una Noche Inolvidable” featuring the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra with Arturo O'Farrill (Palmetto Records).

Feature coverage of his Grammy win made the Wisconsin State Journal, Capital Times, Badger Herald, Daily Cardinal and the February issue of eNEWSLINE, published by  the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business

Kwan said, “It’s exciting, but it’s not about me; it’s about the artists. I’m just happy to be along for the ride. That’s what I’m hoping to do with my career, to facilitate and provide meaningful opportunities for the artists.”   
  
A Los Angeles native, Kwan earned his undergraduate degree in political science and music at Duke. In addition to producing live concerts, he has experience producing records. He works closely with the performing artists, helping them choose their repertoire and selecting the best takes during the mixing process.

Kwan hopes having an MBA in Arts Administration from UW-Madison will help him develop a career as a producer of a wider variety of art performance, including classical music and dance. As part of his studies with the Bolz Center for Arts Administration, he is working as the education and outreach coordinator for UW-Madison’s Union Theater.