Renaissance Man

Quinton Morris, DMA, has already had an impressive 2023 and it’s no surprise that this accomplished creative—he’s a masterful violinist, a music educator and mentor, a broadcaster and an entrepreneur—is not slowing down.

In the spring, after being feted at his alma mater Boston Conservatory at Berklee, where he received a prestigious Alumni Achievement Award, he got news of his promotion to Professor of Violin at Seattle University, where he has taught since 2007. The full professorship means that Dr. Morris is only the second living Black violinist to achieve this academic milestone in U.S. history. Additionally, he is the first Black man and the first music professor promoted to full professor in the College of Arts and Sciences.

It bears repeating to say that Dr. Morris is only the second living Black violinist to achieve a full professorship—that’s anywhere in the country. The first was University of Denver Professor of Violin Gregory Walker. The significance of this accomplishment is not lost on Dr. Morris.

“I think it demonstrates to other people, Black string players, that it is possible for one to climb the ranks in academic through to full professorship,” he says. “In music, it’s just not seen in string instruments as it is in winds or brass or even voice. Strings, and especially violin, are much more exclusive. I’m honored that my name will go down in history.”

For Dr. Morris, the full professorship is especially meaningful when he thinks of other Black artists and authors, academics and thought leaders who have been influential in his life. “I am honored because when I think of full professors, I think of Dr. Henry Louis Gates. I think of Dr. Maya Angelou, who was my literature teacher in my undergraduate studies,” he says. “I think of Dr. Cornell West and Dr. Toni Morrison. I think of those greats who, while they’re not in music, earned the title of full professor. And now I have reached the same rank. I’m humble, thankful and grateful and I’m proud of me. And I don’t say that in an arrogant way, but academia is no easy course. And I’m proud that I hung in there and didn’t quit.”

Another great honor was the recognition from Boston Conservatory. “I loved my time there. I felt like I had died and gone to musical heaven. Boston Conservatory is a special place. I studied with Lynn Chang, who is best friends with Yo-Yo Ma, who would come to our lessons at times and give us feedback on our playing,” Dr. Morris recalls. “Most of the faculty also taught at Harvard or Princeton or Yale. There was always some world-renowned musician coming in. As the graduate assistant to the String Department Chair, I also learned very practical skills, from budgeting to the power of a thank you card. Boston Conservatory really helped me build my career.”

The list of well-deserved accomplishments doesn’t end there.

In March, he was named “Outstanding Studio Teacher of the Year” by the Washington chapter of the American String Teachers Association (ASTA) at the National Association of Music Education conference, preceded by the “Pathfinder Award” from the Puget Sound Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. As the executive director of Key to Change, Dr. Morris celebrated the success of high school and middle school students Madison Cole, Eden Pawlos and Avi Spillers who were selected as winners in the Key to Change Concerto Competition, resulting in a professional debuts with the Seattle Symphony this fall.

And, amid all of this, he curated a series of three concerts in the Chapel of St. Ignatius, sponsored by the Pigott Family Endowment for the Arts, featuring artists and composers of color. The concerts were broadcast live on his weekly radio show, Unmute the Voices, on Classical KING where he serves as Artist Scholar-in-Residence.

“It’s just been a banner year,” he says. “A lot of people have acknowledged my work and I’m just thankful. I think it proves that hard work never goes unnoticed. Smart work never goes unnoticed,” he says. “And I feel like I’m living proof of that because I’ve been working hard for a long time. And I don’t take any of this for granted.”

Read a fuller piece on Dr. Morris in the fall edition of Seattle University Magazine, out in early November.