Sunday, February 1, 2009

Violinist David Burnett Publishes 'The Collective – Newsletter for & about Musicians of Color'

David Burnett is an accomplished violinist who is Orchestra Director at Harlem School of the Arts, and teaches Violin and Viola there. Through ArtsConnection.org, he also teaches at two public schools in Brooklyn. In 1987 he founded The West Village Quartet, an African American ensemble which has a residency with the Baltimore Symphony. David also publishes “The Collective – Newsletter for & about Musicians of Color”. The Jan. 29 issue has articles and photos on a variety of performers, including the Harlem Quartet, Kelly Hall-Tompkins, the Ritz Chamber Players and Maestro Paul Freeman of the Chicago Sinfonietta. His E-mail address is DavidBviolin@aol.com

David Burnett (Violin, Viola, Orchestra Director) has been on the violin faculty of HSA for 16 years. He is head of the string department, conducts the string orchestra and has 52 private students. Mr. Burnett also teaches at the Langston Hughes Middle School and P.S. 6 in Brooklyn through Artsconnection. He began studying the violin with Galina Heifetz while a student at Music and Art High School and subsequently was self taught. Mr. Burnett completed his undergraduate studies at Oberlin Conservatory with Marilyn McDonald, followed by studies with Lynn Chang at the Boston Conservatory, and then private studies with Daniel Phillips in New York. Mr. Burnett’s string quartet, The West Village Quartet, has performed together for over 18 years and currently has a residency with the Baltimore Symphony.

West Village Quartet
The West Village Quartet is an African-American string quartet, performing works from the classical repertoire. The Quartet was founded in 1987 by David Burnett, who is the second violinist and manager of the group. The quartet has made noteworthy appearances on Entertainment Tonight, 20/20, Queens Access Public Television and PBS's Children's Express, and have also performed in the West Indies, Florida, Georgia, San Francisco, and Oregon. The Quartet has performed for the Essence Awards; the NAACP; Dance Theatre of Harlem; the Ford Foundation; former Mayors of New York City, Ed Koch and David Dinkins at Gracie Mansion; Paul Newman; and Patti LaBelle, among others.

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