The Catalyst Quartet

Hailed by the New York Times at their Carnegie Hall debut as “invariably energetic and finely burnished…playing with earthy vigor,” the Catalyst Quartet is comprised of top Laureates and alumni of the internationally acclaimed Sphinx Competition for young Black and Latino string players. The mission of the ensemble is to advance diversity in classical music and inspire new and young audiences with dynamic performances of cutting-edge repertoire by a wide range of composers. Founded by the Sphinx Organization, the Catalyst Quartet combines a serious commitment to diversity and education with a passion for contemporary works.
The quartet has held residencies and given master classes both domestically and abroad at the Cincinatti Conservatory of Music, In Harmony Project; London, UK and the University of South Africa to name a few. They also serve as principal faculty at the Sphinx Performance Academy at Oberlin College and Northwestern University. The Catalyst Quartet members are visiting teaching artists at the Sphinx Preparatory Music Institute, hosted by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra made possible in part through the generous support of Stuart and Maxine Frankel. They have also participated in the Juilliard String Quartet Seminar, Grand Canyon Music Festival, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival and been featured in The Strad and Strings magazines including radio and television broadcasts on American Public Media’s Performance Today as well as Detroit Public Radio and Television.
The Catalyst Quartet maintains an active performing schedule and completed a national tour in the fall of 2011. Highlights of the tour included the opening concert of the Stanford Lively Arts series, a return to the Harris Theater in Chicago and  sold out performances at Miami’s Frank Gehry designed New World Center and New York’s Carnegie Hall (Stern Auditorium) with members of the legendary Guarneri Quartet.
Inspired by music’s ability to transform, the Catalyst Quartet seeks to change the way that classical music is perceived through diverse programming for a wide range of audiences.

The Catalyst Quartet proudly endorses Pirastro strings. www.pirastro.com

Bryan Hernandez-Luch

Violin
As a Utah native of Peruvian descent, Bryan began his violin studies at the age of six. At the age of fifteen he made his solo debut with the Utah Symphony Orchestra. Hailed by the press for his compelling performance at the 2003 Sphinx Competition, Bryan Hernandez-Luch won first place in the senior division while performing with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. As a Sphinx Laureate, Bryan has appeared with the Cleveland, Atlanta, New Jersey, Utah, Chautauqua, New World, Colorado, Nashville, Grand Rapids, Prince George Philharmonic and Battle Creek symphony orchestras as well as Canada’s National Arts Center Orchestra. As a soloist he has worked with such conductors as Franz Welser-Möst, Robert Spano, Keith Lockhart, David Cho, Arthur Fagan and Thomas Wilkins.

An avid chamber musician, Bryan is a founding member of the Catalyst Quartet. Their performances have been featured in New York City’s Carnegie Hall – Stern Auditorium and Weill Hall – South Africa, London, and major cities throughout the U.S. In the fall of 2011, he was the concertmaster of the Sphinx Virtuosi, a conductor-less chamber orchestra, in their inaugural U.S. tour.

Bryan has toured extensively across the U.S., Japan and Korea, as a guest artist with the piano chamber ensemble, The 5 Browns. In 2007, Bryan wrote an arrangement for violinist Gil Shaham and The 5 Browns which can be found on the album, Browns in Blue (RCA Red Seal/Sony). A highly sought after studio musician, Bryan has recorded numerous soundtracks and solos for major motion films, including the 2010 World Cup soundtrack and music for the 2011 NBA Finals. He is also in frequent demand as a freelance artist, having performed alongside Josh Groban, Sarah Brightman, Rod Stewart, Il Divo, and other popular artists.

Bryan is currently pursuing a master’s degree at The Juilliard School, studying with Joseph Lin, first violinist of the Juilliard String Quartet. Bryan has studied at the Manhattan School of Music, University of Utah and Brigham Young University. He resides in New York City with his wife, concert pianist, Desirae Brown.

Karla Donehew-Perez

Violin
Born in Puerto Rico, Karla began playing the violin at age three. By age nine she had performed as a soloist with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, and shortly after that was featured on a national television show about young gifted Latin American children. She was the youngest member of Festival Orchestra Juvenil de Las Americas during the Casals Festival.  At age twelve, Karla moved to California and entered The Crowden School, a middle school with a focus on string chamber music. She continued her studies with Anne Crowden, Director and founder of The Crowden School.
Karla has been able to attend celebrated music festivals, such as the Aspen Music Festival and School, Music Academy of the West, The Banff Music Centre, Perlman Chamber Music Program, Encore School for Strings and New York Strings Seminar. She has given solo performances with the Classical Philharmonic Symphony, Berkeley Symphony, Sacramento Philharmonic, San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, Oakland East Bay Symphony, Sphinx Symphony Orchestra, Sphinx Chamber Orchestra, Prometheus Symphony Orchestra, and with renowned artists such as Gary Karr and Frederica von Stade.
Karla completed her Bachelors and Masters degrees at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying performance with the heralded violin teachers Paul Kantor, David Cerone, and William Preucil. As a student at CIM, Karla participated in numerous Master Classes with distinguished artists, and served as the CIM Orchestra’s concertmaster. As a member of the WO-MEN String Quartet, she was awarded 1st place at the Ohio String Teachers Association Competition, and Honorable Mention at the Plowman Chamber Music Competition. The quartet was also chosen to represent CIM for the Conservatory Project at the Kennedy Center for the Arts and was selected to play a recital for the Cleveland Chamber Music Society. In her junior year, Karla was a recipient of the prestigious Dr. Jerome Gross Award in violin. Karla was also awarded second place at the Sphinx Competition. Karla was featured on the Young Artist Series for the Festival del Sole, in Napa Valley, California, and was guest concertmaster of the Tucson Symphony Orchestra. Recently, Karla was a fellow at the New World Symphony, where she often sat concertmaster or principal second violin and performed as a soloist.

Karla performs on a fine violin by Charles and Samuel Thompson, London 1774, on generous loan from Patricia Press Nissen in memory of Alvera and Dudley Warner- Press, and a fine violin bow by Victor Fetique, from the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation.

Christopher Jenkins

Viola
Christopher Jenkins, violist, is a sought-after performer in the classical and rock worlds in New York City. Having toured with Diana Ross in the summer of 2010, he also has performed in the viola sections of the New York Philharmonic, the St. Louis Symphony, the Virginia Symphony, and American Ballet Theatre, and has soloed in London and Manchester with jazz great George Russell’s Living Time Orchestra. As a chamber musician, Mr. Jenkins was the violist of Invert, an alternative-rock string quartet as well as the Haven String Quartet, and is the current violist of the Catalyst String Quartet.

Other artists with whom Mr. Jenkins has performed and recorded include singer/songwriter Sufjan Stevens, and Robert Pollard of Guided by Voices. He has performed abroad extensively, including a tour of Pakistan with Cultures in Harmony and work in China as a chamber music coach and fellow of the Perlman Music Program. Semifinalist in the 2003 and 2004 Sphinx Competitions and Third-Place Laureate of the 2005 Competition, Mr. Jenkins has been Dean of the Sphinx Performance Academy, Sphinx’s summer music program, since 2007, and teaches at the Academy with the Catalyst Quartet. In 2010, Sphinx gave him the Sanford Allen Award in recognition of his professional achievements as Dean. He has also played on Broadway in Les Miserables, Spamalot, Phantom of the Opera, and the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Show. He is currently associate principal viola of the Miami Symphony, and assistant principal viola of the Reading Symphony.

Classical performers with whom Mr. Jenkins has appeared in concert include Itzhak Perlman, the Guarneri Quartet, Ron Leonard, Mikhail Kopelman of the Borodin Quartet, Sanford Allen, Jesse Levine, and David Geber of the American String Quartet.

In the spring of 2004, Mr. Jenkins graduated from the Manhattan School of Music, where he earned a Professional Certificate studying with Michael Tree and Karen Dreyfus. He earned his M.M. at New England Conservatory, where he studied with Martha Katz, and his B.A. at Harvard University, where he concentrated in music and psychology and studied with Michelle LaCourse of Boston University. In the spring of 2011 Mr. Jenkins graduated with a master’s degree in international relations from Columbia University, where he concentrated in Human Rights as a David Ottaway Fellow. In conjunction with Columbia University Professor of Psychology Valerie Purdie-Vaughns, he is currently working on a book chapter focusing on conceptions of multiculturalism and colorblindness in the United States and abroad.

Karlos Rodriguez

Cello
Cellist Karlos Rodriguez made his orchestral debut at the age of thirteen to great audience and critical acclaim. And has since been an avid soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician appearing at many of our important musical venues including Carnegie Hall (Isaac Stern Auditorium), Merkin concert hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Philadelphia’s Kimmel center, and Radio City Music Hall, to name a few. Mr. Rodriguez has also had the honor of working with distinguished artists such as the Beaux Arts Trio, American, Cavani, Cleveland, Emerson, Guarneri, Juilliard, Miami, Orion, Tokyo, and Vermeer String Quartets; Janos Starker, Lynn Harrell, and Steven Isserlis. His teachers have included Richard Aaron, Peter Wiley, and David Soyer. A love of modern dance paired with live music has led to collaborations with the Thomas/Ortiz Dance Company, Freefall, Mark Morris Dance Group, and Chita Rivera. Karlos has attended and been a guest artist at the ENCORE School for Strings, Sarasota, Aspen, and Kneisel Hall chamber music festivals, Cleveland Chamber Music Society, and the Philadelphia Orchestra Chamber Music Society. As a teacher he is on the faculty at Summertrios and the Sphinx Performance Academy. Mr. Rodriguez has worked on various Broadway musicals and Pop albums, most recently with Shakira and Marc Anthony. In addition to these musical activities he is also the Principal Cellist of the Florida Grand Opera Orchestra in Miami and cellist of the Catalyst Quartet. Karlos plays on a cello by Gregg T. Alf on generous loan from the maker. www.alfstudios.com