Ensemble

NAME USAGE: Please refer to the ensemble by its official trademarked name, PRISM Quartet, not PRISM Saxophone Quartet. If you wish to identify instrumentation, we suggest doing so parenthetically, i.e., PRISM Quartet (saxophones).

LONG BIO

Intriguing programs of great beauty and breadth have distinguished PRISM Quartet as one of America’s foremost chamber ensembles. PRISM seeks to place the saxophone in unexpected contexts, to chart fresh musical territory, and to challenge, inspire, and move audiences. “A bold ensemble that set the standard for contemporary-classical saxophone quartets” (The New York Times), PRISM was founded by students of the renowned Donald Sinta at the University of Michigan in 1984. In its earliest years, PRISM was chosen by Musical America as “Outstanding Young Artists,” performed on Entertainment Tonight and National Public Radio’s Performance Today, was a prize winner in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, and toured virtually every state in the U.S.

The Quartet subsequently received two Chamber Music America/ASCAP Awards for Adventurous Programming and has performed at Carnegie Hall on the Making Music series, at Alice Tully Hall with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and throughout Latin America, China, and Russia under the auspices of the United States Information Agency and USArtists International. PRISM has also been presented to critical acclaim as soloists with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra, and has held residencies at the nation’s leading conservatories, including the Curtis Institute of Music and the Oberlin Conservatory, with an upcoming residency at The Juilliard School.

Champions of new music, PRISM has commissioned more than 400 works, many by internationally celebrated composers, including seven Pulitzer Prize winners: William Bolcom, Jennifer Higdon, Susie Ibarra, Bernard Rands, Tyshawn Sorey, Julia Wolfe, and Zhou Long; MacArthur Fellows George Lewis, Bright Sheng, and Miguel Zenón; Guggenheim Fellows Kati Agócs, Martin Bresnick, Chen Yi, Mandy Fang, Steven Mackey, and Anna Weesner; and jazz masters Melissa Aldana, Steve Lehman, Rudresh Mahanthappa, and Greg Osby. In 1997, PRISM launched its own concert series, now presented in Philadelphia, New York City, and Ann Arbor, featuring the newest compositions created for the ensemble by composers from around the world.

PRISM’s discography is extensive, with nearly 40 releases on Albany, BCM&D, BMOP/Sound, ECM, innova, Koch International, Navona, Naxos, New Dynamic, New Focus, Orange Mountain Music, and its own label, XAS Records. The Fifth Century, PRISM’s ECM recording with The Crossing under Donald Nally, won a 2018 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance. PRISM may also be heard on the soundtrack of the film Two Plus One by Emmy nominee Eugene Martin, scored by Quartet member Matthew Levy, and was featured in the theme music of the weekly PBS newsmagazine NOW.

PRISM’s concert series and recordings feature a who’s who of contemporary music makers, including the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Ethel, Sō Percussion, Talujon, Partch, Music From China, Opera Colorado, Cantori New York, and Network for New Music, as well as top jazz artists such as Uri Caine, Ravi Coltrane, Joe Lovano, Ben Monder, Jason Moran, Arturo O’Farrill, Chris Potter, and Bill Stewart. PRISM has also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Crossing, the New York Consort of Viols, and the Chilean rock band Inti-Illimani, and with Miro Dance Theatre, Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, and Philadelphia Ballet.

In 2016, PRISM Quartet was named by its alma mater, the University of Michigan, as the first recipient of the Christopher Kendall Award in recognition of its work in “collaboration, entrepreneurship, and community engagement.”

PRISM Quartet performs exclusively on Selmer saxophones.

SHORT BIO

Intriguing programs of great beauty and breadth have distinguished PRISM Quartet as one of America’s foremost chamber ensembles. “A bold ensemble that set the standard for contemporary-classical saxophone quartets” (The New York Times), PRISM has performed at Carnegie Hall and with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and has toured Latin America, China, and Russia under the auspices of USIA and USArtists International. PRISM has also appeared as soloists with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra, and has held residencies at the nation’s leading conservatories, including the Curtis Institute of Music and the Oberlin Conservatory, with an upcoming residency at The Juilliard School. A two-time recipient of the Chamber Music America/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming, PRISM has commissioned more than 400 works by eminent composers, including Pulitzer Prize winners William Bolcom, Jennifer Higdon, Susie Ibarra, Bernard Rands, Tyshawn Sorey, Julia Wolfe, and Zhou Long, and MacArthur Fellows George Lewis, Bright Sheng, and Miguel Zenón. PRISM’s discography is extensive, with nearly 40 releases on Albany, BCM&D, BMOP/Sound, ECM, innova, Koch International, Navona, Naxos, New Dynamic, New Focus, Orange Mountain Music, and its own label, XAS Records. The Fifth Century, PRISM’s ECM recording with The Crossing, won a 2018 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance. PRISM was named by its alma mater, the University of Michigan, as the first recipient of the Christopher Kendall Award in recognition of its work in “collaboration, entrepreneurship, and community engagement.” PRISM Quartet performs exclusively on Selmer saxophones.