Kinetic Ensemble

Dubbed “Houston’s Indie, Conductorless Orchetra” (Houston Public Media), the artist-led, artist- curated Kinetic Ensemble has been gaining momentum as an innovative and dynamic force in the classical music scene since forming in 2015. Consisting of 16 string players and performing without a conductor, Kinetic is committed to amplifying diverse, under-represented, and newly composed classical music through flexible chamber and orchestral performances. The ensemble has been praised for its “thoughtful, incisive programming” and “visually arresting... brilliantly executed” performances (Arts+Culture Texas), and as a champion of new music, has premiered over 17 new works by composers of our time, including Karim Al-Zand, Patrick Harlin, Nicky Sohn, Daniel Knaggs, Paul Novak, and Daniel Temkin. With collaboration at its core, Kinetic frequently partners with other artistic organizations toward creating innovative performance experience, including Moody Center for the Arts, Houston Chamber Choir, Da Camara, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Noble Motion Dance Company, Houston Methodist Hospital — and more. Featured artist-collaborators from recent seasons include composer-vocalist Clarice Assad, pianist Brian Connelly, soprano Alexandra Smither, bassist Charles Paul, and Windsync. Kinetic’s recording of three string works by Pierre Jalbert on the Orchid Classics album, String Theory, was released in 2021 to critical acclaim. The ensemble also appears on the 2018 Centaur Records album “Studies in Nature: new music by Karim Al Zand.” Kinetic’s self-titled debut album of four world-premiere recordings was released by Bright Shiny Things in 2023.

Kinetic Ensemble Performers

Violin 1

Mary Grace Johnson

Jacob Schafer*

Yu-Ming Andrew Ma

Allison Smith

Violin 2

Giancarlo Latta*

Astrid Nakamura

Kami Ghavi-Helm

Emily Richardson

Viola

Tonya Burton

Sebastian Stefanović*

Sergein Yap

Cello

Chris Ellis

Kristiana Ignatjeva

Caio Alves Diniz*

Bass

Austin Lewellen

Christian Harvey

*Performing on Capriccio for 10 Instruments