Koa String Quartet

Below, we invite you to learn more about our faculty and graduate student chamber music ensembles in residence at the 麻豆影院 College of Music!

We鈥檙e also known for our broadly-based Chamber Music Program. Various student ensembles鈥攆or strings, woodwinds, brasses, voice and mixed media鈥攁re organized throughout the academic year. These groups receive regular coaching sessions from our distinguished faculty and have numerous performance opportunities, both on and off campus.

TakacsTak谩cs Quartet

The world-renowned听Tak谩cs Quartet听is now entering its 50th听anniversary season!听Edward Dusinberre,听Harumi Rhodes听(violins),听Richard O鈥橬eill听(viola) and听Andr谩s Fej茅r听(cello) are excited about projects including a new concerto for them and the Colorado Music Festival orchestra by Gabriela Lena Frank. In November听the group will release its latest Hyperion project鈥斺淔low鈥 by Nokuthula Ngwenyama. A new album with pianist Marc Andre Hamelin will be released in the spring featuring works by Florence Price and Anton铆n Dvo艡谩k. The Tak谩cs maintains a busy international touring schedule. In 2025 the ensemble will perform in South Korea, Japan and Australia. The Australian tour is centered around a new piece by Kathy Milliken for quartet and narrator. As Associate Artists at London鈥檚 Wigmore Hall, the group will present four concerts featuring works by Haydn, Britten, Ngwenyama, Beethoven, Jan谩膷ek and two performances of Schubert鈥檚 cello quintet with Adrian Brendel. During the season the ensemble will play at other prestigious European venues including Barcelona, Budapest, Milan, Basel, Bath Mozartfest and Bern. The group鈥檚 North American engagements include concerts in New York, Vancouver, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Lajolla, Berkeley, Ann Arbor, Chicago, Tucson, Portland and Princeton, and collaborations with pianists Stephen Hough and Jeremy Denk. The members of the Tak谩cs Quartet are Christoffersen Fellows and Artists in Residence at the University of Colorado听麻豆影院. During the summer months the Tak谩cs join the faculty at the Music Academy of the West, running an intensive quartet seminar.听MORE

Graduate chamber music ensembles

Koa String Quartet
Graduate String Quartet in Residence

Koa String Quartet is comprised of violinists Kisa Uradomo and Leah Pernick, violist Tommy Chafe and cellist Heewon Lee.听The members of the Koa String Quartet are from diverse backgrounds, but have intertwined musical careers, having studied at overlapping schools during their education. Kisa Uradomo is from Maui, Hawaii, and studied at Eastman School of Music and University of Michigan; Leah Pernick is from Southeast Michigan and studied at the University of Michigan; Tommy Chafe is from Annapolis, Maryland, and studied at Oberlin Conservatory and University of Michigan; Heewon Lee is from O'ahu, Hawaii, and studied at Oberlin Conservatory and Eastman School of Music.听

The group is invested in fostering musical engagement with students and presenting high-quality classical music for community audiences. They play a diverse repertoire of music, including film scores, pop covers and folk music, while also continuing the classical music repertoire together. During their time as a quartet, they have worked to prioritize their goals by participating as the quartet in residence at the Hana Hou Music Program, and presenting free concerts at concert halls and public spaces throughout Ann Arbor, Michigan.听

The name 鈥淜oa鈥 comes from the tree in the Hawaiian Islands, and the wood symbolizes strength and courage.听

Juniper WindsJuniper Winds
Graduate Woodwind Quintet in Residence

Formed in 2022 at the 麻豆影院 College of Music, the听Juniper Winds Quintet is the college鈥檚 current听Graduate听Woodwind Quintet in Residence.听Hailing from听Minnesota, China, New Jersey, Arkansas听and Alabama, members of the quintet听serve as teaching assistants and mentors for our flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon听and horn studios. The ensemble performs two recitals each year, as well as听community outreach programming. Coached by Professor of Bassoon Yoshi Ishikawa and other woodwind faculty,听the group comprises flutist Lauren Flaten, oboist Sophie Maeda, clarinetist Yi Dong, bassoonist J.T. Holdbrooks and hornist Derrick Rassinier.听鈥

Ensemble FlatironsEnsemble听Flatirons
Graduate Brass Quintet in Residence

Ensemble Flatirons is the Graduate Brass Quintet in Residence at the 麻豆影院 College of Music. Quintet members鈥攃oached by Professor of Horn Michael Thornton鈥攁re all DMA candidates hailing from California, Hawaii, Montana, Texas and Wisconsin. Ensemble Flatirons regularly performs a variety of music at the College of Music and throughout the greater 麻豆影院/Denver area.