The Marian Anderson String Quartet, the first African American ensemble to win a major classical music competition, will be in residence at UTC from Wednesday, Nov. 5, through Friday, Nov. 7.
The residency includes a free public concert at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 7, in Cadek Recital Hall on the UTC campus. Free parking is available in the adjacent Lupton Hall parking garage; both the parking garage and Cadek Hall are accessible to people with disabilities.
The visit is co-sponsored by the Ruth S. Holmberg Professor of American Music, the Division of Access and Engagement, the Department of Music, and Africana Studies.
UTC Ruth S. Holmberg Professor of American Music Jonathan McNair said the residency brings both artistic excellence and direct student engagement to campus.
“I am grateful and delighted that the Marian Anderson String Quartet will be performing some of the music I have written and arranged for them for their concert at UTC,” McNair said. “One of these works includes narration and an audience singalong.”
During their visit to Chattanooga, the quartet also will meet with UTC music and Africana Studies classes and visit a local high school.
McNair noted that the work has connected with audiences elsewhere. Amy Rossman, chair of Chamber Music Corvallis in Oregon—who presented the quartet in 2024—wrote, “I can tell you that everywhere it was a hit. The children at the library were mesmerized by the MASQ and the music they played.”
Formed in 1991, the Marian Anderson String Quartet received first prize at the International Cleveland Quartet Competition and was granted permission to carry Marian Anderson’s name with the legendary contralto’s blessing. The ensemble has received national recognition, including the Congress of Racial Equality Martin Luther King Award for Excellence in Arts and Culture and the Chamber Music America Guarneri String Quartet Award.
The quartet has appeared at venues across the United States and Europe, including Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center inaugural celebration, the Library of Congress and the National Gallery of Art. In addition to its concert work, the ensemble has a long record of education and outreach through churches, prisons, rural communities, libraries and schools under organizations such as Young Audiences, Da Camera of Houston and Project Grad.
The Marian Anderson String Quartet has held university appointments including residencies at the City College of New York, California State University–Los Angeles, Prairie View A&M University, Texas A&M University and Blinn College, and completed a graduate fellowship at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music.
Location: Cadek Hall is located at 725 Oak St., adjacent to the UTC Fine Arts Center. Free parking is available after 5 p.m. in the Lupton Hall parking garage (700 Vine St).