named programs · 4 · from sources
What they call their work
Broad Statements
Annual free mini-festival celebrating creative music-making by women and gender-marginalized artists, featuring performances, family activities, and new works.
Educational Workshops and Open Rehearsals
Interactive sessions including family-friendly sound doodles, open rehearsals, and Q&A events to engage the public with contemporary music creation.
Lake George Composer's Institute
Residency program where the ensemble workshops and premieres new works by emerging composers at the Lake George Music Festival.
NYU Graduate String Quartet Seminar
Annual residency at New York University where the ensemble performs world premieres by graduate student composers.
activities · 5 groups
What they do
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Music Education and Training Programs 3 activities
- Conducting artist residencies and educational workshopsServes as ensemble-in-residence at the Lake George Music Festival’s Composers Institute and conducts artist residencies at universities including NYU, Tulane, Arkansas State, Berklee, and Zurich University of the Arts. Workshops and performs new works developed by student and faculty composers during these engagements.
- Delivering music education and masterclassesProvides music education to students of all ages through school partnerships, university teaching, and public masterclasses. Offers instruction in violin and creativity development at institutions including United Nations International School, Columbia University, NYU, and Zurich Hochschule der Künste.
- Developing children’s music programmingCreates and presents interactive music experiences for children, including SOUND DOODLES — a family event where kids ages 4+ create music from drawings — and live performances of newly composed children’s songs by ensemble members.
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Commissioning New Musical Works 2 activities
- Commissioning and premiering new musical worksCommissions, develops, and premieres new compositions by contemporary composers, including ensemble members and emerging artists. Has premiered over 300 new works and co-commissioned multimedia pieces such as Paul Pinto’s String Quartet No. 3 ‘OCTET’. Supports early-stage development through collaborations with composers and residencies.
- Reimagining the string quartet through feminist and contemporary performanceReimagines the string quartet in a contemporary, feminist context via live performances, commissioning, and creative reinterpretation of repertoire. The ensemble centers gender-marginalized voices and integrates improvisation with diverse notational systems including graphic and Western classical notation.
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Live Music Performances & Concerts 2 activities
- Performing at major venues and international touringPerforms regularly at prominent U.S. and international venues and festivals including Roulette, Joe's Pub, the Met Museum, Noguchi Museum, Lucerne Festival Forward, MATA Festival, and Moving Sounds Festival. Tours nationally and internationally in countries including France, Austria, Switzerland, and Finland.
- Presenting annual festivals and curated performance seriesProduces and presents the annual Broad Statements Festival, a marathon-length mini-festival celebrating music by women, non-binary, and gender-expansive artists. Also provides platforms for solo and small-format debuts and showcases new works through curated concert programs.
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Nonprofit Music Recording and Distribution 1 activity
- Recording and releasing albums of contemporary musicRecords and releases albums featuring original compositions by ensemble members and collaborators. Released multiple albums including Pastorale (2024), Seagrass (2023), Seaglass (2025), and I PASS’D A CHURCH (2024), distributed through labels such as New Focus Recordings.
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Musicological Research and Scholarly Editions 1 activity
- Researching and performing works by historical women composersConducts research and performance initiatives focused on recovering and presenting music by historical women composers through the Hidden Mothers Project, contributing to broader representation in contemporary classical music.
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financials · form 990EZ · fy2025
revenue
Total revenue$117K
Contributions & grants$74K63%
Program service revenue$42K36%
Investment income$4280%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$116K
Program expenses—
Admin / overhead—
Fundraising—
Salaries & benefits$0
Grants paid out$23K
balance sheet
Total assets$25K
Cash—
Investments—
Liabilities—
Net assets$25K
3 years on record · 2023–2025 · YoY revenue +53.3%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2025
Who runs it
paid leadership · 2
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leah Asher | Executive Director | 10 | $18K |
| Marina Kifferstein | Artistic Director | 10 | $17K |
board members · 2
- Clement So — Director
- Tamika Gorski — Director
relationships · 42
Who they work with
- Aether Eos Partner — Violin-piano duo co-founded by Leah Asher
- Bergamot Quartet Partner — Co-commissioned Paul Pinto's large-scale multimedia work OCTET
- Bergamot Quartet Partner — Collaborative performance and co-commissioning partner for Paul Pinto’s String Quartet No. 3 ‘OCTET’.
- Bergamot Quartet Partner — Collaborative performance partner on the premiere of Paul Pinto's String Quartet No. 3 'OCTET'
- Bergamot string quartet Partner — Co-commissioned the multimedia work "OCTET" by Paul Pinto
- Berklee College of Music Partner — Conducts residencies and educational workshops
- Berklee College of Music Partner — Host institution for a residency involving student collaboration and concert performances
- Columbia University Partner — Marina Kifferstein has led masterclasses at Columbia University.
- Composers Conference Partner — Marina Kifferstein is on the violin faculty at the Composers Conference.
- Festival Musiques démeusurées Partner — Marina Kifferstein has performed at the Festival Musiques démeusurées in France.
- Gold Bolus Recordings Partner — Released Meaghan Burke's album "A Few Concerns"
- ICIYL Network — Member of or affiliated with ICIYL, which has described the Rhythm Method's artistic approach.
- International Contemporary Ensemble Partner — Marina Kifferstein regularly appears as guest artist with the International Contemporary Ensemble.
- Lake George Music Festival Partner — Collaborates as ensemble in residence for the Composer's Institute.
- Lake George Music Festival Partner — Collaborates as quartet-in-residence for the Composers Institute
- Lake George Music Festival Partner — Host festival for the ensemble-in-residence program and new works workshop
- Lake George Music Festival Partner — Serves as quartet-in-residence for the festival's Composers Institute
- Lucerne Festival Partner — Marina Kifferstein is a frequent guest artist at the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland.
- Lucerne Festival Academy Partner — Marina Kifferstein is on the violin faculty at the Lucerne Festival Academy.
- Lucerne Festival Academy Partner — Performed as a member under conductors Sir Simon Rattle and Peter Eötvös.
- Musiikin aika festival Partner — Marina Kifferstein has performed at the Musiikin aika festival in Finland.
- New Focus Recordings Partner — Label that released The Rhythm Method’s recording of Paul Pinto’s String Quartet No. 4: I PASS’D A CHURCH in 2024.
- New Focus Recordings Partner — Record label that released The Rhythm Method's recording of Paul Pinto's String Quartet No. 4: I PASS'D A CHURCH
- New Focus Recordings Partner — Released the album "Pastorale"
- New York University Partner — Conducts residencies and educational workshops
- New York University Partner — Host institution for the fourth-year Graduate String Quartet Seminar residency
- New York University Partner — Hosts The Rhythm Method's multi-year residency with the Graduate String Quartet Seminar.
- New York University Partner — Marina Kifferstein has led masterclasses at New York University.
- Nicolee Kuester Partner — Co-creator with Leah Asher of the series 'Meaningless Work'
- Point Counterpoint Partner — Marina Kifferstein is on the violin faculty at Point Counterpoint.
+ 12 more
strategies · 4
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Collective Creativity as Community Modelingmethodology: collective_creativityBy nurturing individual creative voices within the ensemble through collaborative composition and shared vision, the group models collective artistic practice that extends beyond the quartet to build broader artistic community, because internal equity fosters external engagement.
- Cross-Community Artistic Developmentmethodology: cross-community_engagementBy fostering cross-pollination between disparate new music communities and serving as a platform for emerging work through residencies and collaborations, the ensemble advances contemporary music, because connecting isolated networks increases innovation and audience reach.
- Feminist Reinterpretation of the String Quartetmethodology: feminist_reinterpretationBy reimagining the traditional string quartet through a feminist and intersectional lens, the ensemble challenges patriarchal norms in classical music and builds equity, because centering gender-marginalized voices transforms both artistic leadership and repertoire.
- Interdisciplinary Performance Integrationmethodology: interdisciplinary_performanceBy integrating theatrical staging, improvisation, vocalization, graphic notation, and visual art into chamber music, the ensemble expands public engagement and accessibility, because multimodal expression makes contemporary music more immersive and inclusive.