Celebrating Black History: Diane Monroe (Violin ’80)

“Throughout my career, I have often felt that my playing had the most meaning, and the demands on my artistic imagination, emotional reserves and technical ability were greatest, when I performed for audiences in special need of care and healing.” —Diane Monroe*

Internationally esteemed Curtis alumna, violinist Diane Monroe (’80), whose virtuosic playing shifts between jazz and classical music, with “one foot in the old world and another stylish one in the new” (Philadelphia Inquirer), gained widespread recognition as the first violinist of both the Uptown String Quartet and the Max Roach Double Quartet—two groundbreaking ensembles that brought jazz string playing to new heights. Earning critical acclaim, they made appearances on The Cosby Show, CBS News Sunday Morning, and Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, and recorded albums for Soul Note, Philips/Polygram, and Mesa/Bluemoon.

A graduate of Curtis, Ms. Monroe studied with violinist David Cerone (’62) at the school. She also attended the Philadelphia Musical Academy (later known as the University of the Arts), and studied at Oberlin Conservatory and Michigan State University. Beyond her recognition as a performer of note, she is also a brilliant composer and arranger whose work has been showcased on television, in recordings, and on major stages across the globe. In 2018, she received both a Pew Fellowship and a Pew Project grant from The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, which funded her 2019 project, Violin Woman, African Dreams. Her arrangement of Fred Rogers’ You Are Special also made its way onto the Sony Classical soundtrack for the 2019 film, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, starring Tom Hanks, as the iconic children’s TV host and author.

Watch Diane Monroe play her solo violin arrangement of the spiritual “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child,” an excerpt from her musical memoir Violin Woman, African Dreams, which was recorded live at historic Cliveden House in Philadelphia.

A highly sought-after collaborator, Ms. Monroe has performed with jazz greats like Odean Pope (Sounds of the Circle Project), Bobby Zankel’s Warriors of the Wonderful Sound, and Dave Allen’s residency ensemble at the Kimmel Center. She has a deep musical connection with vibraphonist Tony Miceli, with whom she recorded the duo album Alone Together—a project that has since grown into a jazz quartet, performing at venues like the Kennedy Center’s Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Festival. She has also worked with dancer-choreographers Germaine Ingram and Leah Stein, blending her improvisational violin playing with movement-based performances.

Over the years, Ms. Monroe has shared the stage with an impressive roster of artists, including Joe Lovano, Oliver Lake, Anthony Davis, Quincy Troupe, Reggie Workman, Mike Boone, Louis Nash, John Blake Jr., Regina Carter, Mark O’Connor, Dave Grusin, Uri Caine, and Don Byron. It is this rare ability to move seamlessly between musical genres that has made her a vital presence in both the jazz and classical communities. In 1983, she won the prestigious Pro Musicis Recital Award, which led to solo recital debuts at Merkin Hall (New York), Schoenberg Hall (Los Angeles), the Renwick Gallery (Washington, D.C.), and Pickman Hall (Boston). She has been showered with numerous accolades, including the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of the Arts, the Wendy and Alan Pesky Award, and Pennsylvania Artists on Tour honors.

One of the defining moments of her career came in 1993 when she performed at the original Fiddlefest at Carnegie Hall. That night, she played Igor Stravinsky’s The Fairy’s Kiss alongside pianist Marie-Christine Delbeau, followed by her powerful solo arrangement of Amazing Grace. It one of those remarkable moments when both her classical and jazz identities could shine on the same stage, and Fiddlefest, a benefit for the East Harlem Violin Program, took her to Alice Tully Hall, the Tonhalle in Switzerland, the Apollo Theater, and the Ziegfeld Theater in New York City. She also appears in the documentary Small Wonders and the Meryl Streep film Music of the Heart, which tell the story of this influential program and concert at Carnegie Hall.

As an ensemble musician, Ms. Monroe has played with the Kasimir and Beaumont String Quartets, the Amabile Piano Quartet, the Concerto Soloists Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and several other esteemed groups. She’s served as concertmaster for the Pennsylvania Ballet Orchestra, the Concordia Orchestra, and the Jupiter Symphony, and she has been a featured artist at the Marlboro, Caramoor, and Sitka chamber music festivals. A champion of contemporary works, she premiered works by Robert Capanna and Paul Salerni, David Baker’s Violin Concerto with the Duluth Superior Symphony, Pablo de Sarasate’s Carmen Fantasy with the Harlem Symphony, and Andrew Rudin’s Violin Concerto with Orchestra 2001 (released on Innova Records).

Passionate about mentoring the next generation of musicians, Ms. Monroe has taught and coached chamber music at institutions like Oberlin Conservatory, Temple University, Swarthmore College, and the Settlement Music School in Philadelphia. She has also served as a judge for the Sphinx and Fischoff competitions and has mentored young artists from the Ying, Brentano, Dali, PUBLIQuartet, and Marian Anderson String Quartets. From intimate settings to grand concert halls, Diane Monroe’s music is a celebration of tradition, innovation, and the deep emotional power of the violin. And whether she’s playing jazz, classical, or something in between, her sound is unmistakable—rooted in history, yet ever-evolving.

Visit Diane Monroe’s official website.

Please visit the Curtis Institute of Music Open Archives and Recitals (CIMOAR). Learn more about Curtis’ library and archives HERE.

* Quoted in “Violinist Diane Monroe Speaks from the Heart about the Healing Power of Music,” WRTI, February 15, 2021

Photo Credits: 1 & 2.) Portraits of Diane Monroe, courtesy of the artist’s official website. 3.) Kasimir Quartet in front of 1726 Locust Street; Curtis Archives. 4.) Kasimir Quartet in concert in Agen, France: Karen Dreyfus (viola), Vivian Barton (cello), Kathy Lucktenberg (violin), Diane Monroe (violin); Curtis Archives. 5.) Album cover of Max Roach Presents The Uptown String Quartet; Polydor Records, 1992. 6.) Kasimir Quartet in Field Concert Hall, November 7, 1979 (L-R): Diane Monroe, Kathryn Lucktenberg, Vivian Barton, and Karen Dreyfus; Curtis Archives. 7.) Diane Monroe, 2018 Pew Fellow; photo by Ryan Collerd.

Class of 1980

Back Row: Robert Hoyle, Andrew Wasyluszko, Steve Kamilos, Daniel Hardt, Richard Elliott
Third Row: Mark Vasicek, Sara Kathryn Lucktenberg, Holly Blake, Kevin McDowell, Jack Clay, Nadya Tichman, Joseph Alessi
Second Row: Janet Jackson, Alison Skerlong, Margaret Batjer, Thomas LeGrand, Bonnie Hall, Suzanne Rousso
Front Row: Joyce Ramee, Molly Huang, Yoko Fugita, Michael Bayard, Mei-Ling Wang, Diane Monroe, Amy Brodo, Michael Hope
In Absentia: Mary Bishop, Daisy Jackson, Sarah Johnson, Robert KesselmanThomas Lorango, Mark Ludwig, Robert Kesselman, Brian Phipps, Gary Schutza