Sphinx Organization

The ideas you bring to SphinxConnect don’t have to stay in the conference room 💙

Daniel, founder and executive director of Àkójọpọ̀, shares how his own path through arts administration helped lead him toward building an organization rooted in music, culture, and community.

It’s one of the things Daniel values about gathering at SphinxConnect: being surrounded by people, ideas, and collaborators who can help move the work forward.

🎟️ Registration for SphinxConnect 2027 is $125.
If you’re exploring other ways to participate, fellowship applications remain open through October 20.
📍 Detroit
📅 January 21–23, 2027
💬 Comment CONNECT and we’ll send you the registration link!

The semifinal stage comes later. The application comes first 🎻

Here is Paul Aguilar performing during the semifinal round of this past January’s 29th Annual Sphinx Competition.

The 30th Annual Sphinx Competition returns to Detroit in January 2027, continuing a nearly three-decade tradition of celebrating excellence and bringing exceptional string players to a national stage.

If applying has been on your mind, there are only a few weeks left to submit.

📅 Applications are due October 20, 2026 at 11:59 PM ET
💬 Comment COMPETE and we’ll send you the application information!

🎶 Paul Aguilar performing J. S. Bach, Cello Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009, I. Prelude

If SOPA has been sitting on your “maybe” list, today is the day to decide 🎺

Trumpeter Eric Pereira has participated twice, and he credits the experience with helping him grow through realistic audition practice, professional feedback, and connections with orchestras across the country.

He also values the fact that SOPA gives musicians access to that experience without adding another financial barrier.

Eric’s advice to anyone considering applying is clear: prepare, record yourself, practice under pressure, and go for it.

📅 Applications for SOPA 2027 are due TODAY, October 2, 2026
💬 Comment SOPA and we’ll send you the application information!

In two weeks, Aaron P. Dworkin’s words will be heard from the Carnegie Hall stage.

For Damien Geter’s Declaration, Aaron wrote a libretto exploring what it means to make the promise of belonging real as Sphinx celebrates 30 years alongside America at 250.

One of the images at the center of the work imagines opening a threshold until it no longer feels like a wall, an idea Aaron says holds so much of what Sphinx means to him.

On October 16, Grammy-winning mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges joins Sphinx Virtuosi for the New York premiere of Declaration, co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall.

Aaron hopes audiences leave thinking about the doors they can open for someone else.

📍 Carnegie Hall
📅 Friday, October 16, 2026
🕢 7:30 PM ET
💬 Comment CARNEGIE and we’ll send you the ticket link!

The audition itself may not get easier, but the way you prepare for it can change completely 🎻

That has been part of Harper Randolph’s experience returning to SOPA over multiple seasons.

The violist shares how the program helped her build more discipline and structure into her preparation, while also changing the way she thinks about auditions that once felt overwhelming.

Harper continues to return because every season gives her something new to learn, from detailed feedback by professional musicians across the country to a clearer understanding of her own progress.

For her, SOPA has become a way to measure growth while continuing to prepare for what comes next.

📅 Applications for SOPA 2027 are due October 2, 2026
💬 Comment SOPA and we’ll send you application information!

Leadership can feel very different when you stop carrying it alone 💙

For Patricio Molina, Sphinx LEAD provided something he had been missing: a cohort of peers who could understand the weight he was carrying and help him put words to it.

That sense of community also gave him more confidence in bringing his full identity into his work.

Patricio describes living at the intersection of different cultures, languages, and worlds that do not always speak to one another. Today, he sees that as something to bring into every room rather than something to hold back.

📅 Applications for Sphinx LEAD Cohort 9 are due October 20, 2026.

💬 Comment LEAD and we’ll send you application information!

Before the semifinal stage, there was an application 🎻

Here is Noah Carr performing during the semifinal round of this past January’s 29th Annual Sphinx Competition.

Applications are now being accepted for the 30th Annual Sphinx Competition, returning to Detroit in January 2027.

For young string musicians considering the Competition, this is the first step toward the opportunity to perform, connect with artists and leaders across the field, and be heard on a national stage.

📅 Applications are due October 20, 2026 at 11:59 PM ET

💬 Comment COMPETE and we’ll send you the application information!

🎶 Noah Carr performing William Grant Still - Suite for Violin and Piano, I. "African Dancer" with Joseph Williams, piano

Amaryn Olmeda brings Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson to Carnegie Hall 🎻

On October 16, Amaryn joins Sphinx Virtuosi for American Dialogues, performing Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson’s Louisiana Blues Strut: A Cakewalk for solo violin and Fritz Kreisler’s Recitativo and Scherzo-Caprice.

The program celebrates Sphinx’s 30th anniversary and America at 250, with featured artist J’Nai Bridges, the world premiere of Rubén Rengel’s Encuentro, and music by Rachel McFarlane, Igor Stravinsky, Jessie Montgomery, and Damien Geter.

We’re three weeks away, and Carnegie Hall is filling up.

📍 Carnegie Hall
📅 Friday, October 16, 2026
🕢 7:30 PM ET

💬 Comment CARNEGIE and we’ll send you the ticket link!

🎶 Amaryn Olmeda performing Louisiana Blues Strut: A Cakewalk by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson

Sometimes the first step is simply deciding to take the shot 🎶

Flutist Martin Godoy shares how SOPA helped him feel more prepared for auditions while giving his playing the chance to reach orchestras across the country.

For Martin, that access creates possibility. It means musicians can be heard more broadly while gaining experience that reflects the kinds of auditions they may encounter for orchestras, festivals, and other professional opportunities.

His advice to future applicants is simple: take the audition.

📅 Applications for SOPA 2027 are due October 2, 2026
💬 Comment SOPA and we’ll send you application information!