A contemporary classical music troupe grows in Sarasota

Never heard of enSRQ? You’re not alone. That's the acronym of the contemporary classical music group that Samantha Bennett and George Nickson founded in 2015.

The group that is kicking off its 10th season on Oct. 27 is officially known as ensembleNewSRQ. For simplicity’s sake, Bennett and Nickson often use enSRQ as a nickname. 

Many Sarasota classical music fans remember Bennett, a violinist, and Nickson, a percussionist, from their days in the Sarasota Orchestra. Bennett was second principal violin of the Sarasota Orchestra from 2016-22 while Nickson was principal percussionist from 2012-19.

After arriving in Sarasota, the couple was thrilled to be playing full-time with an orchestra, but they missed the spontaneity and exploration of their days at the New England Conservatory. At both school and at music festivals, they collaborated with living composers on new works.

“So much of what we did in school was helping friends with the creative process,” Bennett explained in an interview. “We assumed that was going to be part of our professional lives. And then we realized we were going to have create an outlet to do this. We were going to have to make it happen ourselves.”

The contemporary classical group that is today called enSRQ traces its roots to a concert that the husband-and-wife team played in 2014 at First Congregational Church.

File photo

On the bill for the first concert was “Hop” by Paul Lansky, a duo for marimba and violin, as well as a vibraphone and violin piece called “Stillpoint” by Dutch composer Edward Top. Rounding out the evening was a Prokofiev sonata played by Bennett and Khan Variations, a composition for marimba written by Alejandro Viñao that Nickson performed.

“We had a really positive response, especially from audience members who weren’t used to seeing percussion instruments just a couple of feet away,” Bennett says. “We decided to keep it going.”

When Bennett and Nickson enlisted percussionist Mike Truesdell, a friend, to be the third board member (they were the first two), needed for ensembleNewSRQ to become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization under Florida law, they didn’t have a clear vision of what they were trying to create.

“We didn’t think about the long term,” Nickson says. “We only thought about the now.”

What they were sure about is that they wanted to fill an empty niche in Sarasota — performing classical music composed in the last 50 years. In fact, most of the music that enSRQ has performed in its first decade is even more recent — written after 2000.

A lot has happened in the 10 years since Bennett and Nickson founded enSRQ. They have moved to Dallas, where Nickson is now the principal percussionist and Bennett is the interim section second violin with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. 

Their Sarasota-based music group has performed more than 250 unique works and has appeared at The Ringling’s jewelbox Historic Asolo Theater, the Hermitage Artist Retreat in Englewood and at the Sarasota Opera House.

The group has also collaborated with Sarasota Contemporary Dance and participated in two different festivals at The Ringling, first in 2016 under the auspices of performance curator Dwight Currie and again in 2024 under his successor Elizabeth Doud.

An album is on the way

The group recently recorded its first album in New York City, which will be released in 2026. The album doesn’t have a title yet, but it’s something that Bennett and Nickson have been dreaming of for years.

Helping Bennett and Nickson bring contemporary classical music to Sarasota are key collaborators such as Truesdell and pianist Conor Hanick, both based in New York City, and Detroit cellist Abraham Feder.

Also playing important roles in enSRQ are Sarasota Orchestra members Betsy Hudson Traba on flute, Jennifer Best Takeda on violin, Bharat Chandra on clarinet and Natalie Helm on cello.

Although Bennett and Nickson both hold master’s degrees in music, neither has an MBA or an arts administration degree. “We’ve had to figure it out as we went along,” Bennett says. “There’s been a steep learning curve.”

One thing that Bennett and Nickson could have never imagined in their wildest dreams was the arrival of COVID-19 in March 2020. With in-person performances not possible during lockdown, the ensemble invested in the technology to livestream its performances.

“We did everything digitally that season and it took us in a new direction,” Bennett says. “Technology helped us carry our art forward.”

With Brian J. Boyd handling video and Sam Nelson on audio, enSRQ continues to livestream its concerts, picking up subscribers around the world who pay for online performances.

Another influential member of the enSRQ team has been photographer Matthew Holler, who has shot playful portraits of Bennett and Nickson over the years. With their offbeat poses, the couple defies the stereotype of the serious, stuffy classical musician.

Rather than kicking off their 10th season with an anniversary concert, Bennett and Nickson have decided to stage a retrospective program in February where they will play some of their most memorable pieces.

For their first concert of the season on Oct. 27, “Tangled Whispers,” the lineup includes Sebastian Currier’s “Whispers,” which explores a world where silence can be as expressive as sound.

Also on the bill are Amy Williams’ newly commissioned “Tangled Madrigal” for string quartet, Jerod Tate’s “Inchokkilliss” for guitar and percussion and Elliott Carter’s “Triple Duo.”

Like most of enSRQ’s concerts, “Tangled Whispers” will be held on a Monday at First Congregational Church, the place where it all started more than a decade ago.