Sandbox Percussion

Described as “exhilarating” (The New York Times) and “utterly mesmerizing” (The Guardian), Grammy-nominated ensemble Sandbox Percussion brings out the best in composers through their unwavering dedication to artistry in contemporary chamber music. Sandbox Percussion captivates audiences with performances that are both visually and aurally stunning, solidifying them as leaders in the fields of contemporary music and percussion. Brought together by their love of chamber music and the simple joy of playing together, Jonathan Allen, Victor Caccese, Ian Rosenbaum, and Terry Sweeney engage a wider audience for classical music through multidisciplinary collaborations with today’s leading artists.

Sandbox Percussion’s 2021 album Seven Pillars was nominated for two Grammy awards—Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance and Best Contemporary Classical Composition. Andy Akiho’s evening-length work with stage direction and lighting design by Michael Joseph McQuilken is Sandbox Percussion’s largest commission to date. In addition to the album, Sandbox Percussion commissioned 11 films that accompany each movement of the work.

Sandbox Percussion performed Seven Pillars over 15 times in the 2022–23 season, with sold-out stops throughout the United States and Europe. In October, Sandbox Percussion performed the work live with the LA Dance Project and choreographer Benjamin Millepied at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. Additional season highlights include upcoming performances of Viet Cuong’s Re(new)al with the Pacific Symphony and with the American Composer’s Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. This season, Sandbox Percussion will release two albums, featuring the music of composers Matt McBane and Jerome Begin.

In addition to maintaining an international performance schedule, Sandbox Percussion holds the position of ensemble-in-residence and percussion faculty at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and The New School’s College of Performing Arts, where they have created a curriculum with entrepreneurship and chamber music at its core. Sandbox Percussion has led masterclasses and coachings at prestigious music schools in the United States, including Curtis Institute, the Juilliard School, the Peabody Conservatory, and Cornell University. In 2016, Sandbox Percussion founded the annual NYU Sandbox Percussion Seminar, a week-long seminar that invites percussion students from around the globe to rehearse and perform today’s leading percussion chamber music repertoire.

In 2022, Sandbox Percussion launched their Creator Mentorship Program, a commissioning program that solicits proposals from early-career creators around the world. The selected creators are commissioned to create a new work for Sandbox Percussion, and given time, space, and funding for a year-long workshop and development period.

In 2020, Sandbox Percussion released their debut album And That One Too on Coviello Classics. The album features works by longtime collaborators Andy Akiho, David Crowell, Amy Beth Kirsten, and Thomas Kotcheff.