Sybarite5

Sunday March 16, 2025
5:00 PM

Equal parts passion, grit, and musical ecstasy, Sybarite5 is an intoxicating cocktail of genre-breaking artistry expressed through the virtuosity of violinists Sami Merdinian & Suliman Tekalli; violist Caeli Smith; cellist Laura Andrade; and double bassist Louis Levitt. It’s the first ensemble of its kind to win the prestigious Concert Artists Guild competition and the group is constantly evolving, defying categorization, and keeping audiences on their toes. 

The group has performed in 44 states and counting, from the Library of Congress, (Washington DC) to Anchorage Concert Association, (Alaska) as well as concerts in Sybarite5’s home of New York City at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, National Sawdust, Le Poisson Rouge, the Cell Theatre, and in late 2023, as part of Death of Classical’s “The Crypt Sessions” series. Sybarite5 has also appeared at festivals including Ravinia, Grand Teton, Aspen, Caramoor, Wolf Trap, Interlochen, Chautauqua and many others. International appearances include Canada’s Tuckamore Music Festival and ChamberFest Ottawa, the New Docta International Music Festival in Cordoba, Argentina, and the Osaka Festa in Osaka, Japan. 

 Dubbed “the millennial Kronos” (Theater Jones), Sybarite5 is chamber music’s most dynamic ensemble taking listeners on a musical journey of staggering breadth and depth with new works by living composers, as well as the group’s favorite selections from Radiohead, Coltrane, Komitas, Piazzolla, and Pete Seeger... but as Strings Magazine says “that doesn’t even begin to describe the range of their eclecticism or the depth of their repertoire. “ 

On October 20th 2023 Sybarite5 releases their latest studio recording Collective Wisdom. The ensemble's discography includes four other critically-acclaimed recordings: Live from New York It's Sybarite5 (2020); Outliers (2018); Everything in its Right Place (2012) and Disturb the Silence (2010).