Ensembles-in-Residence
In addition to studying with Mannes' world-class studio and classroom faculty, students have the opportunity to work with a range of ensembles-in-residence at Mannes and across the College of Performing Arts.
JACK Quartet
Described as “one of contemporary music’s indispensable ensembles” by the New York Times, the JACK Quartet is an ensemble-in-residence at Mannes. JACK’s members are committed to promoting 20th- and 21st-century string quartet music and expanding the way artists and audiences interact. JACK has been nominated for three GRAMMY awards and received the 2024 Chamber Music America’s Michael Jaffee Visionary Award.
As an ensemble-in-residence at Mannes, the JACK Quartet gives concerts, coaches ensembles, leads master classes, and mentors the Cuker and Stern Graduate String Quartet. Each member of the quartet coaches chamber ensembles and maintains a private studio at the school.
Sandbox Percussion
The members of Sandbox Percussion, an ensemble-in-residence at the College of Performing Arts and recipients of the 2024 Avery Fisher Career Grant, are leaders in contemporary chamber music performance. They offer the Mannes community workshops, forums, lectures, and concerts and collaborate with students across the College of Performing Arts. Their annual Summer Seminar, hosted by Mannes, brings together students from around the world to study, rehearse, and perform contemporary works that expand the boundaries of percussion chamber music.
The Westerlies
The Westerlies, an ensemble-in-residence at the School of Jazz and Contemporary Music, have been described by the New York Times as “an arty quartet … mixing ideas from jazz, new classical, and Appalachian folk.” They are equally at home in concert halls and living rooms and navigate a wide array of venues and projects with the precision of a string quartet, the audacity of a rock band, and the charm of a family sing-along. Formed in 2011, the self-described “accidental brass quartet” emerged from the prevailing winds that travel from the West to the East. “Skilled interpreters who are also adept improvisers” (NPR’s Fresh Air), The Westerlies explore jazz, roots, and chamber music influences to create the rarest of hybrids: music that is both "folk-like and composerly, lovely and intellectually rigorous” (NPR Music).