Elevate Ensemble’s goal is in our name: to seek new heights in classical music performance by bringing together an evolving ensemble of musicians to meet the interests of an evolving San Francisco. Elevate Ensemble features the works of emerging composers along with great works of the previous centuries, because we seek to honor the compositional lineage that links the past to the present. Our collaborations with other artistic media such as poetry and visual arts lead to exciting performances and reach new audiences by fostering a merger of artistic and cultural interests.

Award winning String Quartet Founded in 2013

We are advocates for Bay Area musicians and catalysts for dynamic, creative music-making throughout the region.

Oakland/ Bay Area-based String Quartet

Friction Quartet exists to modernize the chamber music experience and expand the string quartet repertoire. Friction achieves this mission by commissioning new works, curating imaginative programs, collaborating with artists, and presenting interactive educational outreach.

Destiny’s Bio 

Destiny Muhammad is Recording/ Performing Artist in Singer-Songwriter fashion on Harp. Her genre ‘Celtic to Coltrane’ is cool and eclectic with a touch of storytelling to round out the sonic experience.  Destiny has opened for The Oakland East Bay Symphony, shared the  stage with Pulitzer Prize Winner/ Author Alice Walker,  GRAMMY Awardee(s) India. Irei, Narada Michael Walden, Jazz Masters Azar Lawrence, Marcus Shelby, Omar Sosa, John Santos and co-starred in Def Jam Poetry Winner Ise Lyfe's Hip Hop Play 'Pistols & Prayers to name a few. She has also headlined for the 'Women in Jazz' Concert series in San Francisco. Destiny is expanding her musical ideals with her project(s) S.O.N.G/ Strings of a Nubian Groove Nubian string ensemble,The Destiny Muhammad Project, & The Richard Howell Quintet (RHQ) 

Destiny is Governor Emeritus and Educational Chair Emeritus of the Recording Academy, San Francisco Chapter, Jazz Heritage Center of San Francisco Jazz Ambassador and an ASCAP Songwriter Awardee

'Destiny Muhammad should be a Bandleader...dig!'


Keith Hines
kcsm.org

Splinter Reeds is the Bay Area’s first reed quintet, composed of five talented and innovative musicians whose reeds vibrate primarily to the sounds of the 20th and 21st Century. Splinter is committed to presenting top tier performances of today’s best new music, demonstrating the vast possibilities of the reed quintet, with an emphasis on commissioning new works, collaborating with fellow musicians and artists, and educating the next generation of musicians and music enthusiasts.

What is a reed quintet? The first reed quintet – Calefax – was formed in the 1980s in Amsterdam; the configuration has since developed into a vibrant and growing chamber music genre. Think of it as an evolutionary detour from your traditional “wind quintet,” with the advantages of a more closely related instrumental family. Subtract a flute and a horn, add a bass clarinet and saxophone. If you did the math correctly, you are left with a uniquely virtuosic and dynamic instrumentation: oboe (Kyle Bruckmann), clarinet (Bill Kalinkos), saxophone (David Wegehaupt), bass clarinet (Jeff Anderle), and bassoon (Dana Jessen).

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