2B — Thursday, March 9, 2017
the b-side
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Clayton
Penrose-Whitmore
was 12-years-old the first time
he made the trek to Detroit
to
compete
in
the
Sphinx
Competition.
The Evanston, Ill. native,
now 23, had heard about the
annual
strings
competition
— open to African-American
and Latino players — from his
violin instructor. Attending the
Sphinx Competition served as
a subtle revelation: Penrose-
Whitmore, who had become
accustomed to being the only
Black violin player among his
peers, was now surrounded by
people who looked like him and
shared similar experiences.
“[There] was an unspoken
understanding throughout the
competition
of
community,”
said
Penrose-Whitmore
in
a
phone
interview.
Nearly
a decade after his Sphinx
experience, he emerged from
the 2014 competition with a
second place prize in the Senior
Division.
Annelle
Gregory,
like
Penrose-Whitmore, first heard
about Sphinx when she was 12
or 13, through a family friend.
Now, she’s 21. Over the years
she came closer and closer to
nabbing the top prize, until
this year, when she was named
champion.
“It was very rewarding for
me to be named the winner
this year,” she wrote in an
email, “having been through
every other placement in the
competition previously.”
The
Sphinx
Organization,
which runs the competition, is
a Detroit-based organization
dedicated to increasing the
diversity
of
top-tier
string
players across the country. The
inaugural competition was held
in 1998, but the organization, the
brainchild of Aaron Dworkin,
then a student in the School
of Music, Theatre & Dance
(where he is now the dean),
began earlier. Dworkin noticed
an acute lack of diversity in
the upper echelons of classical
music performance — which
would deter young minorities
from taking up classical music
— and decided to address it.
Afa
Dworkin,
now
the
Executive
Director
of
the
Sphinx
Organization,
first
learned about Sphinx through
Aaron, her then classmate.
“We spoke at length about
why he felt something like this
was necessary at the time,” she
revealed over the phone, “and
while it seemed laudable at the
beginning, and while it seemed
like a wonderful idea, there was
nothing like actually meeting
the first cohort of musicians
and just recognizing the depth
of talent and of need that was
out there.”
Dworkin joined Sphinx in
1999
as
the
organization’s
first intern, working on the
programmatic team, developing
the curriculum, scholarships,
partnerships and the programs
around the competition. The
experience was illuminating.
“At the same time when I
was recognizing how much
talent there is in the pool of the
musicians that are working,”
she said. “I realized how little
opportunity there is and how
much work there is in order
to connect the talent with the
resources that are out there.”
When
the
Sphinx
Competition began, Blacks and
Latinos each comprised less
than 1.5 percent of the talent
in the top tiers of classical
orchestra performance. Now,
thanks in large part to Sphinx
and programs for which it
has served as inspiration and
catalyst, that number is up to 4.6
percent. But, Dworkin said, the
inaugural competition revealed
that the problems underlying
the lack of diversity in the most
prestigious
orchestras
ran
deep. Students need to start
playing at a very young age,
and when schools only begin
to teach music to 12-year-olds
or 13-year-olds, they’ve already
passed a critical point.
Danielle Belen, who won the
2008 Competition and has gone
on to serve on the competition’s
jury and teach some of Sphinx’s
programs, agrees. She considers
herself
lucky
because
her
parents believed music was
a critical component of early
education. But she admits that
her experience is not universal.
“Most parents are not geared
that way,” she said. It is here
where Sphinx can fill in the
gap. Sphinx has been stitching
classical music into the lives of
African-American and Latino
students at an earlier and
earlier age where public schools
are lacking.
Sphinx
quickly
began
to
develop preparatory programs
for students after school and a
“boot camp” over the summer.
The programs combined access
and education so that playing
classical music was achievable
to all students. Costs, too, were
not lost on Sphinx, which has
built
numerous
scholarships
and grants over the decades and
has awarded about $2.5 million
to date.
Belen
has
been
on
the
receiving
end
of
Sphinx’s
help. After her win, Belen was
invited to perform with various
orchestras,
including
the
Cleveland Symphony, the San
Francisco Symphony and the
Boston Pops, among others.
“It was a whirlwind of a year,”
she said in the phone interview.
Belen
has
also
won
two
different awards, amounting
to $55,000, which she used to
fund scholarships at a summer
festival she started.
One
of
Sphinx’s
larger
mechanisms
for
financial
support is the MPower Artist
Grant, which is open to alumni
of various Sphinx programs.
The average award is $25,000,
according to Sphinx’s website.
After her win, Belen began
to focus on education, building
connections and teaching at the
Colburn School in Los Angeles,
then in the Violin Department
at the University of Michigan.
“Sphinx has always been
there, always along the way,
providing support,” she said.
Sphinx’s
commitment
to
networking within the classical
music community, an ever-
important role in the field, is
manifested in a more recent
development, Sphinx Connect
— “our epicenter for artists and
leaders in diversity,” Dworkin
said — which helps players
network
to
find
openings
in a field notorious for its
competition for opportunities.
At
the
center
of
Sphinx
Connect is a yearly convention
for musicians. This past year,
over
500
people
attended
from across the world. Sphinx
Connect continues throughout
the year by hosting webinars,
contributing
to
a
mentor
network that serves as a “true
conduit” for rising musicians
to an industry increasingly
attuned to the necessity of
inclusion.
The
Sphinx
Organization
also runs a litany of educational
programs.
One
is
Sphinx
Overture, which provides free
introductory lessons to Detroit
and Flint students. The Sphinx
Performance Academy is a full-
scholarship summer program
for solo instrumentalists to
hone their craft. Not to be
limited by geography, Classical
Connections assists teachers in
incorporating classical music
into
classrooms
across
the
country.
As the Sphinx Competition
approaches its 20th birthday,
Dworkin looked back at the
organization’s progress.
“There’s
been
a
transformative
impact,”
she
said, not only indicated by the
experiences of musicians the
organization has affected. “But
also the field being so much more
responsive and connected” to
the organization’s work. When
orchestras and institutions try
to confront their own lack of
diversity, Sphinx often serves
as an exemplary model.
Sphinx’s direct impact is also
substantial. There are over 600
alumni of the organization and
two million people are reached
each year through live and
broadcast audiences.
Not to mention, Sphinx’s
extraordinary
musical
achievements amount to the
DANIEL HENSEL
Daily Film Editor
Approaching its 20th anniversary,
Sphinx Organization takes stock
Clayton Penrose-
Whitmore was
12-years-old the
first time he made
the trek to Detroit
to compete
in the Sphinx
Competition.
Sphinx quickly
began to develop
preparatory
programs for
students after
school and a “boot
camp” over the
summer
Executive Director of organization aimed at increasing numbers of Black and
Latino classical string musicians reflects on past success and current climate
COURTESY OF SPHINX ORGANIZATION
final word in a skeptic’s debate
over
whether
exceptional
talent existed in enough Latino
and African-American players
to justify the program. That
doubt, abundantly disproven
at this point, had cast a shadow
over Sphinx as it began, but
by now concerns have largely
dissipated.
“[Sphinx participants] have
proven
that
inclusion
does
not mean any sacrifice on the
excellent front … it can exist
in tandem and be celebrated,”
Dworkin said.
Belen
agreed.
When
she
performed with the Sphinx
Virtuosi,
an
orchestra
comprised
of
competition
alumni, she noted, “There are
absolutely no excuses or special
standards”
because
of
the
orchestra’s racial makeup. On
the contrary, she said, “[there’s]
an incredibly high level of
musicianship.”
For Belen, Sphinx’s 20th year
represents a critical juncture in
the organization’s success.
“As an educator, I am seeing
that there are young people who
have now grown up in a world
where there has always been a
Sphinx Organization,” she said.
Progress in the field is slow,
she admits, because players
start early but only reach the
pinnacles much later, perhaps
15 or 20 years in the future.
“We’re
seeing
an
entire
new generation of kids being
influenced
by
this,”
Belen
said. All this progress amounts
to a major change in the
classical music community’s
demographics.
“You
want
to
look
at
musicians
on
stage
that
reflect the musicians of the
community,”
Belen
added.
“That’s the goal and it’s a long
process because it has to start
deep down, with little kids, and
giving opportunities.”
Gregory
named
that
demographic
change
as
a
particularly
important
development.
“Sphinx has opened up minds
to the fact that musicians of
color can not only play classical
music, but that we can be
extremely successful at it,” she
wrote,
Still, there’s work to be done.
Dworkin noticed a persistent
and acute lack of diversity that
remains in America’s academic
music circles — conservatories
and music schools. To take
diversity seriously, she said,
these
institutions
must
go
beyond
supporting
Sphinx;
they need to follow its lead. For
Dworkin, a lack of diversity is
an existential crisis for classical
music. Without making sure
top tier classical musicians
reflect the population as a
whole, “our field stands to feel
and become irrelevant and
therefore suffer and eventually
become extinct,” she said.
Gregory finds meaning in
the music she plays not just
through the notes, but the
context — playing with friends.
“Performing
[the
Sibelius
Violin Concerto, the required
repertoire for the 2017 finals]
with the Sphinx Symphony
Orchestra was a wonderful
experience that I will always
remember,” she wrote, “not just
because I won but because I
know many of the members on
a first-name basis and it was
like giving a concert with my
friends.”
Like
Gregory,
Penrose-
Whitmore’s history with the
Sphinx Competition has been
shaped by the relationships he’s
developed over the years. He
was surprised the first time he
participated in the competition.
“It felt more like a family
reunion than a competition.
It was great,” he said. Music
competitions of the sort are
typically
extra
competitive,
leaving little room for bonding
and socializing. But Sphinx was
different.
“I made a lot of friends that
I still have. It was just a great
vibe over all,” Clayton said.
Belen
shared
a
similar
experience
at
her
first
competition. “It didn’t feel
like a competition,” she said.
“It felt like a family.” They call
it “la Sphinx familia,” Belen
said, and it’s clear why. The
Sphinx Competition extends
far beyond the competition
itself.
Scholarships,
master
classes and concerts are open
to a larger swath of competitors
than the elite few who advance
to the final rounds. In the
mean time, competitors learn
about collaboration and work
with each other in creative
situations.
Experience
as
pedagogy reigns supreme as
competitors bask in a diverse
classical music cornucopia.
As Penrose-Whitmore grew
up, Sphinx’s magic didn’t fade.
“A lot of times over the years
I’ve gone back to the Sphinx
Competition
to
participate
in the orchestra, or compete
again, and honestly I look
forward to just going back,” he
said, “not to compete but just to
see everyone, see the old friends
that I’ve made, and really have
that sense of community there.”
La Sphinx familia extends
beyond
pleasantries
at
the
competition. Belen said many
Sphinx alumni’s careers have
progressed with Sphinx very
much in the background or
foreground. Opportunities have
been opened and connections
have been made through the
organization’s work.
And for some, Sphinx has
provided
much
more
than
musical opportunities. The first
violinist and the violist of the
Catalyst Quartet, an ensemble
of Sphinx Competition alumni,
are getting married.
The Sphinx
Organization
also runs a litany
of educational
programs
“Sphinx has
opened up minds
to the fact that
musicians of color
can not only play
classical music,
but that we can
be extremely
successful at it”
“It felt more
like a family
reunion than a
competition. It
was great”
The Sphinx
Organization is
a Detroit-based
organization
dedicated to
increasing the
diversity of top-
tier string players
across the country
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