Apollo Chamber Players
Celebrating its 15th season, Houston-based APOLLO CHAMBER PLAYERS “performs with rhythmic flair and virtuosity” (The Strad) and “recasts music for a diverse and multi-ethnic generation” (Strings Magazine). The ensemble’s globally-inspired programming and multicultural new music commissions have garnered international acclaim, including sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall and in Havana, Cuba; a Chamber Music America Residency Partnership award; and regular features on American Public Media’s Performance Today. Apollo debuts at the The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. as part of Kennedy’s RiverRun Festival in April 2023.
Released on the Grammy-winning Azica Records label, Apollo’s With Malice Toward None album reached No. 1 on Amazon’s Hot New Release chart, and Strings Magazine praised the album’s message, which tackles “politics, identity, and what it means to be a citizen of a nation balanced between an idealized past and a just and multicultural future.” The ensemble’s catalog of records has been featured on hundreds of radio and media stations worldwide.
Now available on Amazon Prime Video and Tubi, Apollo’s MoonShot documentary feature film was awarded Best Documentary and Best Soundtrack at the Seattle Film Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, and WorldFest Houston.
A passionate advocate for contemporary music and underrepresented composers, Apollo successfully concluded a bold initiative to commission 20 new multicultural works by the end of the last decade. 20×2020 features a diverse roster of the world’s leading composers and instrumentalists including Jennifer Higdon, Libby Larsen, Pamela Z, Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, Hector del Curto, Vân Ánh Võ, and Tracy Silverman.
The ensemble’s community partners include schools and universities, at-risk youth centers, refugee and veterans service organizations, and libraries. Apollo’s vanguard Library Voyage project, an initiative to perform in all Harris County/Houston Public Libraries, is the first of its kind in the nation. Apollo was founded in 2008 by violinist and entrepreneur Matthew J. Detrick.