Music / Civil rights & activism
Aaron Dworkin
born 1970 · violinist, arts leader, educator
Violinist and MacArthur Fellow who in 1997 founded the Detroit-based Sphinx Organization to develop young Black and Latino classical musicians.
- Born
Monticello, New York
age 56- Birth name
- Aaron Paul Dworkin
- Detroit years
- 1990s–present
- Field
- Music, Civil rights & activism
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Dworkin, who is of Irish and African American descent, was adopted as a baby and grew up in New York and Hershey, Pennsylvania. He moved to Michigan to work his way through the University of Michigan, where he earned bachelor's and master's degrees in violin performance in 1997 and 1998. Struck by how few Black and Latino musicians played in American orchestras, he started the Sphinx Competition for young string players in 1997, at twenty-five. It grew into the Sphinx Organization, headquartered in Detroit, whose competition finals take place at Orchestra Hall and whose programs, ensembles and scholarships now reach hundreds of thousands of students and artists. He was named Michiganian of the Year by The Detroit News and received the Michigan Governor's Award for Arts and Culture in 2003, and a MacArthur Fellowship in 2005. From 2015 to 2017 he was dean of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance.
Highlights
- Founded the Sphinx Competition (1997) and the Sphinx Organization
- MacArthur Fellow, 2005
- Detroit News Michiganian of the Year, 2003
- Dean of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, 2015–2017
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Founded · 1997–present
Highlands Detroit
The Detroit headquarters of the organization Dworkin founded to develop Black and Latino classical musicians.
Related place · 1990s–present
Detroit Symphony Orchestra — Orchestra Hall
Orchestra Hall hosts the finals of the annual Sphinx Competition that Dworkin created.