Adé Williams, 14, is violinist for the group. She is a 2011 winner of the DePaul Concerto Festival for Young Performers and a semi-finalist of the 2011 Sphinx Music Competition. She earned an Honorable Mention in the 2011 Chicago Symphony Orchestra for young string players. She won first place and best interpretation of Korean music in the 2010 Senior and 2009 Junior Divisions of the Sejong Cultural Society's Music Competition and second place in the the 2009 Society of American Musicians Competition. She is the first place winner of the 2006 Sigma Alpha Iota String Scholarship Competition, Junior Division and the 2005 Early Music Category, Walgreen’s National Concerto Competition, Junior Open Divisions.

Adé's 2004 orchestral debut at the age of six was with the Chicago Sinfonietta as that orchestra’s youngest ever performer. In 2007, she performed as a soloist with the Highland Park Strings at Ravinia and in 2006 with the South Side Family Chamber Orchestra. Her 2006 radio debut was on WFMT’s Young Artist Showcase.

Adé is the first William Warfield Scholar of the Music Institute of Chicago and a member of the Academy Strings where she studies privately with artist faculty members Almita Vamos and Marko Dreher. She has performed in master classes for concert violinists Tai Murray and Rachel Barton Pine. Adé performs on a violin by Jan van Rooyen, 2008, after the "Comte de Villares" Stradivarius, 1720, on generous loan from the  Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation.

Adé enjoys doing ballet, swimming, Shakespeare, and Mandarin. She loves spending time with her family (especially her little brother, Jonathan).  Visit Adé's blogspot at www.lovemyviolin.blogspot.com/



 
Mira Williams, 13, plays violin and viola with SugarStrings. In 2011, she won an Honorable Mention at the DePaul Concerto Festival Competition (viola). In 2010, she was a first place winner of the Junior Academy's Concerto Competition (viola), 2nd place winner of the Sejong Cultural Society's Music Competition (violin), and won an Honorable Mention in the Early Music Category of the Midwest Young Artists Walgreen's National Concerto Competition. In 2007, Mira received an Honorable Mention in the 23rd Annual Music Festival in Honor of Confucius (violin).

Mira serves as principal violist for the Music Institute of Chicago Academy Strings (2008-2011). She has also served as principal violist for the Chicago Youth Concert Orchestra (2007-08) and concertmaster for the Chicago Youth Debut Orchestra (2005-06). In 2010, she was a featured soloist with Emmy Award winning vocalist Joan Collaso in the critically acclaimed tribute to Nancy Wilson and Shirley Horn at the DuSable Museum. In 2008, she performed at Musician's Network MECCA events. In 2005, Mira was a featured performer on the televised Christmas Glory, starring Al Jarreau and Brian McKnight.

Mira is a William Warfield Scholar and member of the Academy Strings of the Music Institute of Chicago where she studies privately with artist faculty member Marko Dreher. She performs on a Bronek Cison violin, 2006, on generous loan from William Harris Lee. She has taken master classes with Almita Vamos, Heidi Castleman, and David Bowlin. 

Mira enjoys performing, spending time with her family and friends, swimming, trying new things, and reading.

    

Ayanna Williams, 19, plays cello for SugarStrings. She began cello instruction at Spring Brook Elementary School’s fifth grade orchestra program (Naperville, Illinois). Ayanna won “Best of Day” for her solo performance at the 2008 Illinois High School Association Solo/Ensemble competition. She studies with Chris Fiore, DePaul Community Music School, under the direction of Tanya Carey, Roosevelt University, and occasionally with Richard Hirschl, Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She was a member of the Chicago Youth Debut Orchestra during the 2005-2006 season. Ayanna attended the Northwestern High School Music Institute (Evanston, summer 2008) and the Sphinx Performance Academy at Walnut Hill School (Natick, Mass., summer 2005) on full merit scholarships. Currently, Ayanna is a freshman at the University of Illinois, where she performs in the university orchestra and collaborates with rappers, singers, dancers, and musicians.

Ayanna's musical inspirations are bassist, vocalist, composer, and Grammy winner Esperanza Spalding and cellist Eugene Friesen.

Contact DMarie342@aol.com.