A Love Letter to the Queer Community

Let yourself be transported by this music, brought to life by the American Poiesis Quartet, and embrace the quartet for what it is—modern, contemporary, different.

As queer and trans-identified Oberlin alumni, this program is a love letter from the Poiesis Quartet to the queer community at Oberlin, from which it emerged. It aims to highlight voices that are traditionally underrepresented in chamber music. The music in this program explores various aspects of interdisciplinary art, the fusion of non-Western musical forms and structures, political commentary, and improvised sounds.

This program features six 10-minute works by emerging QTPOC (Queer & Trans People of Color) composers who are students or alumni of Oberlin College & Conservatory. Commissioned by the Poiesis Quartet, this impact-driven program aims to expand the string quartet canon to include the artistic stories of diverse artists, with a focus on the extensive knowledge and approaches to music-making by QTPOC that are all too often unheard. According to the Institute for Composer Diversity’s 2024 Orchestra Repertoire Report, works by living women and non-binary composers of color account for only 4.1% of concert performances. Therefore, this program offers artists and audiences everywhere a vital opportunity to challenge the norms of classical music and experience vibrant, captivating, and beautiful music from non-traditional perspectives. (Poiesis Quartet).

The concert will take place on September 14, 2026, at 8 p.m. at the Pianosalon Christophori. Ticket requests can be made via the website.