About Us
Our Origin
The Mosaic Quartet was formed in 2021 through Challenge the Stats, a local non-profit arts organization. From their very first rehearsal, it was evident that these four talented women shared a common goal of revolutionizing classical music in their community. Whenever they performed together, they received feedback from audience members about the importance of their voices in the classical music world and the significance of seeing four highly skilled classical musicians of color unite to perform music by BIPOC composers. Encouraged by this positive response and their desire to use music as a catalyst for change, these four women officially formed a quartet in 2023 and named themselves the Mosaic Quartet to represent the diverse backgrounds of each member and the music they present. The Mosaic Quartet firmly believes that music has a greater impact when it reflects the community it serves. Classical music is for everyone!
Jessica Stinson
Violin
Violinist Jessica Stinson has been hailed by both The State and Free Times as a “thrilling and spectacular” performer with “remarkably mature musicianship”. She has performed extensively throughout the United States and Europe, with performances in New York City, Los Angeles, Italy, and Switzerland. In 2019, Jessica made her solo debut with the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra performing Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major and has also appeared as a featured recitalist at Music at St. Luke’s.
Jessica currently serves as Acting Principal Second Violin in the Atlanta Opera Orchestra and regularly performs with the Atlanta Symphony and Ballet Orchestras. She frequently appears as Concertmaster of the Carroll Symphony Orchestra. Jessica recently made her debut at the legendary Apollo Theater in New York City with jazz composer and trumpeter Russell Gunn and his orchestra.
A passionate and active chamber musician, Jessica is a founding member of Mosaic Quartet and a member of Ensemble ATL. She has made appearances with the Laridae Quintet, Edgewood String Quartet, and Ensemble VIM. She recently made her concert debut with pianist Portia Hawkins featuring a thoughtfully curated program of works for violin and piano by black composers. One of her many performances as a member of the University of South Carolina String Quartet was lauded for its “classical style and technical competence” by The New York Times, adding that groups of such caliber “are not the exclusive property of big cities and international arts centers”.
Jessica currently serves on the violin faculty at the Georgia State University School of Music and maintains a private home teaching studio. Her students are members of the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra, Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Georgia All-State Orchestras. She has conducted masterclasses and workshops for institutions such as the University of South Carolina, the Atlanta Music Project, and Atlanta Public Schools.
Jessica is a graduate of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music in Houston, Texas, having received a Master’s degree in Violin Performance with Mr. Kenneth Goldsmith. She has also studied with Dr. William Terwilliger at the University of South Carolina and David Kim, Concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Jessica currently resides in her birthplace of Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband McKinley and son James.
Tramaine Jones
Violin
Coming soon…
Shadwa Mussad
Viola
Shadwa Mussad (violinist/violist) has distinguished herself as a versatile chamber musician, orchestral player, and educator. As a member of the West Eastern Divan Orchestra, an orchestra for Arab and Israeli musicians founded by Daniel Barenboim and the late Edward Said, she has performed for three consecutive seasons in the world’s most celebrated venues including Carnegie Hall, the Berlin Philharmonie, the Waldbuhne, La Scala, Tchaikovsky Conservatory Hall and the Salzburg Festspielhaus.
She is a member of the Atlanta Ballet and Atlanta Pops Orchestras and plays with a variety of ensembles across the Southeast. Additionally, Shadwa has performed in the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP), the Juventas New Music Ensemble, the Lexington, Springfield and Augusta Symphonies, the Lyra Vivace and ARCO chamber orchestras and the Orchestra of Indian Hill under notable conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Pierre Boulez, Gil Rose, and Levon Ambartsumian. Her music festival appearances have included the BBC Proms, Salzburg, Lucerne, Ravello, Piccolo Spoleto, Masterworks, and Monadnock music festivals.
In addition to her orchestral pursuits, Shadwa is an active chamber musician and a founding member and violist of the Mosaic Quartet. She is equally adept as a teacher and educator and is passionate about enriching the lives of others through music. Shadwa has taught as a Lecturer at the Ohio State University and as a resident teaching artist at the Conservatory Lab Charter School in Boston, MA. She also served as Director of Orchestras at Campbell High School in the Cobb County School District, GA. She currently teaches at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta.
Shadwa holds a dual Masters Degree (MM/MA) in Violin Performance and String Pedagogy from the Ohio State University, a Graduate Performance Diploma from the Longy School of Music of Bard College, and a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Georgia. Her principal teachers have included Yura Lee, Jesse Mills, Kia-Hui Tan, Levon Ambartsumian, Shakhida Azhimkhodjaeva, Catharine Carroll, and Robert Gillespie (string pedagogy).
Alana Bennett-Garcia
Cello
Alana Bennett-Garcia, an Atlanta-based cellist and dedicated music educator, has solidified her presence as a versatile and emotive performer. A graduate of New York University and Indiana University, Alana has had a varied career where she has been a recording artist, collaborator, and performer for film, dance and theatre. Currently serving as a founding member and cellist for the Mosaic String Quartet, she also holds the position of principal cellist with the DeKalb Symphony Orchestra.
In addition to being an active chamber and orchestral musician, Alana maintains an active private studio and is passionate about sharing the joys of music with all generations and with her community. Beyond the realm of music, Alana finds joy in fitness, immersing herself in compelling books, indulging in guilty pleasures of bad TV, and cherishing moments with her family, including her beloved furry companions, Albus and Daisy.