Longwood Debut
Praised for their authentic, soulful, and orchestral sound, dynamic trio The String Queens takes listeners on an exhilarating journey through time and genres, their versatile repertoire spanning the Baroque era to the Jazz Age to today’s Billboard Hot 100.
Composed of Kendall Isadore (violin), Élise Sharp (cello), and Dawn Johnson (viola), The String Queens create captivating musical experiences that inspire audiences to love, hope, feel, and imagine. Based in Washington, DC, the trio has performed at some of America’s most prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York City and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Highlights of their career include a special tribute to Vice President Kamala Harris during the “We Are One” Presidential Inauguration Concert in January 2021 and a spotlight presentation of The String Queens’ electrifying arrangement of Harry Styles’ hit song Golden at the Wimbledon tennis tournament in June 2021. As an ensemble who frequents the DC jazz scene, other headlining performances include multiple appearances at the DC Jazz Festival and the Capital Jazz Fest.
Recognized by DC’s leading news network WUSA9 as “school teachers by day and concert performers by night,” The String Queens’ dedication, service, and innovative work in the field of music education has been acknowledged by the DC Jazz Festival with the Jazz Education Award in 2022; Carnegie Hall with the Music Educators Workshop Keynote Address in 2021; Atlanta Symphony Orchestra with the Aspire Award in 2020; and Washington Performing Arts’ Mars Arts DC Resident Ensemble in 2019 and 2020. Most recently, The String Queens started a partnership with the Save The Music Foundation to present a series of professional development workshops for performing arts educators across the country, focusing on social emotional learning in the arts classroom and trauma-informed centered arts classrooms as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In August 2022, The String Queens released their third album titled RISE, which was made possible by a Sphinx Organization MPower Artist Grant. With this album, The String Queens sought to sonically address the problems that are currently plaguing the world by creating unique arrangements of timeless classics rooted in hope, joy, peace, and love. Featuring original compositions by Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Richard Smallwood, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, and more, RISE takes listeners on a musical journey that starts in a field of loss and hopelessness and ends in a fortress of faith, triumph, and fortitude. Previous albums from The String Queens include a self-titled EP released in 2019 and a holiday EP titled Our Favorite Things released in 2020. The trio will debut their fourth recording in late spring 2026.