photo © Peter Serling

Ethos Percussion Group has inspired audiences throughout the country since 1989 with its exceptional music-making and collective devotion to the world of percussion music. Ensemble members Trey Files, Eric Phinney, Yousif Sheronick and David Shively are all accomplished solo artists whose distinctive musical perspectives combine to create Ethos’ diverse programming and performances. As a quartet equally at home in contemporary classical repertoire and in collaborations with master musicians from non-Western traditions, Ethos integrates global instruments and playing styles into percussion chamber music for a visually and aurally compelling experience. The ensemble’s critically-acclaimed performances regularly feature numerous commissions and world premieres, traditional influences from India, West Africa and the Middle East, and landmark works by composers such as John Cage, Philip Glass, Lou Harrison, Steve Reich and Frank Zappa.

Recent seasons have included concerts across the United States and the United Kingdom, with major engagements at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center's Walter Reade Theater, the Bermuda Festival, London's Wigmore Hall. the Krannert Center, the Library of Congress, and the Percussive Arts Society International Convention. Collaborative projects are a significant part of Ethos’ performances; among recent partners are the Kansas City Symphony, Grammy-winning frame drummer Glen Velez, Bernard Woma (Ghana), M’Bemba Bangouran (Republic of Guinea), as well as North Indian masters Pandit Samir Chatterjee (tabla) and Ramesh Misra (sarangi). Since 1998, Ethos has commissioned more than twenty-five new works for percussion quartet from a diverse range of young and emerging American composers. The premieres of these works have been a significant element of the group’s ongoing concert series dedicated to percussion chamber music, which was established in New York City in 1999. In April 2000, National Public Radio's Morning Edition covered the world premiere of Michael Daugherty's Used Car Salesman, which was commissioned for Ethos by Hancher Auditorium at the University of Iowa.

Since its founding in 1989, Ethos has demonstrated its commitment to advancing the percussive arts in education as well as performance. In addition to presenting clinics and master classes at institutions such as The Juilliard School, Eastman School of Music, University of Illinois, and Berklee College of Music, Ethos has worked with thousands of students in New York City's public schools through concert and classroom activities. Long-term educational residencies elsewhere in the country have included programs with Sun Valley Center for the Arts and Quad City Arts. Ethos is ensemble-in-residence at Lehman College, Bronx, NY, and La Guardia High School for the Performing Arts.

Individually, the members of Ethos have performed with Philip Glass, Branford Marsalis, Yo-Yo Ma, New World Symphony, New Music Consort, Manhattan Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Sospeso, New York City Ballet, De La Guarda and Mabou Mines. They can be heard on a variety of recordings released by CRI, Decca, Koch International, Mode, New World, and Tzadik. Ethos Percussion Group is a member ensemble of Chamber Music America and a sustaining member of the Percussive Arts Society. The ensemble gratefully endorses products from Cooperman Drums, Innovative Mallets, Latin Percussion, Grover Pro Percussion and Yamaha.

Ethos' discography includes Building (2008), Sol Tunnels (2002), The Persistence of Past Chemistries (1999) and Ethos Percussion Group (1996).