Located slightly west of downtown Guadalajara, Mexico, the statue of Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare, stands in the middle of a roundabout with a spear and a shield. The statue inspired Thornton School of Music professor Juan-Pablo Contreras to compose “La Minerva.”

The third movement of the violin concerto, “Himno A La Mujer,” has landed him his third Latin Grammy nomination. Contreras previously received nominations for his compositions “Lucha Libre!” and “Mariachitlán.” The recording that secured his latest nomination was performed by the Orquesta Latino Mexicana, an ensemble he founded in 2019, with soloist Angélica Olivo.

Contreras said women are the backbone of many families in Mexico, and being raised by powerful women himself urged him to write this piece as a way to celebrate women and amplify their voices.

“I imagined a female soloist playing the main part,” Contreras said. “I imagined this soloist kind of embodying the character of this goddess, Minerva, and having her hold, instead of a shield, a violin, and instead of a spear, a violin bow — almost having her become this powerful character that will deliver this important message that raises the voice of women.”

During the coronavirus pandemic, Contreras said he didn’t feel inspired to write new music because the music world shut down. He felt he had no audience to write for. It took him nine months to write “La Minerva,” and it was the first piece he wrote after the coronavirus pandemic.

“I feel how personal it is and how honest it is, and how nonpretentious it is,” Contreras said. “It was more personal and sincere, and without thinking about impressing anyone, but just being very honest with the message that I wanted to convey.”

Contreras said teaching online courses in Spanish about orchestration helped him feel ready to write music again by giving back to the community, especially to Latin American artists.

“I was hungry to find a community that cared for the work that I did and the type of craft that I’ve gotten to master with the years,” Contreras said. “The teaching aspect has been amazing, just being able to give back and to try to inspire these new generations of musicians and composers.”

Joanna Demers, associate dean for faculty affairs at Thornton, said she is thrilled about Contreras’ nomination and hopes for this nomination to land him his first Grammy.

“Any Thornton success or nomination at the Grammys is important for all of our community, and in particular, Juan-Pablo, is already a very inspirational theory student,” Demers said. “Music majors have to go through a very rigorous theory program, so for them to see one of their own instructors being acknowledged is a real coup.”

Contreras cited the performance of his piece, “Mariachitlán,” at the first reopening concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall as another push for him to continue writing. The presentation emphasized how music brings people together, he said.

“In my case, it brings together the Latino and the Mexican community, which is a community that is so proud of their heritage and history,” Contreras said. “They are hungry to see themselves represented in the concert hall, and I’m honored to [have contributed] in that way.”

The performance of his piece “Lucha Libre!” features musicians wearing luchador masks, which are worn by lucha libre wrestlers in Mexico and have historical and cultural significance to the Mexican community. Contreras explained that the best way to experience classical music, and his music particularly, is visually: either by going to a concert or watching a recording.

“Go listen to this music, and especially go watch it on YouTube,” Contreras said. “Don’t be afraid of classical music. I assure you, you will be pleasantly surprised as to the amount of colors and expressivity and just power that the orchestra has.”

Contreras said USC was the first school that invested in him as a professional and allowed him to make a mark as a composer. He said he’s very grateful for the support of the Latino Alumni Association, with which he is still connected.

Cristian Grases, vice dean of the division of classical performance and composition at Thornton, said Contreras creates beautiful classical pieces that pay homage to and elevate the culture of Mexico.

“It’s beautiful to see how a composer is so deeply connected with his roots and doing something unique, creative, assertive, to elevate the beauty of that connection,” Grises said. “I think we — Thornton — recognize a talent like Juan-Pablo. This is why he’s still here teaching for us, working with us. We want our students to be exposed to people like him.”

Contreras said this being his third nomination for his work gives him a sense that he’s establishing himself in the music industry, especially with the Latino community. While that gives him a great deal of pride, he said the most important prize of recognition is that his music is performed frequently.

“I still can’t believe it, because this is not the reason why I went into music,” Contreras said. “It was not to become famous or get awards. It was just for the passion of trying to make the best music possible, and in my case, to write music that is inspired and that celebrates Mexico, my home country. I can’t believe how lucky I am.”

The 25th Annual Latin Grammy Awards will air live from Miami on Nov. 14 on Univision.