Doyle Armbrust

Noted as “a well-connected pillar of the Chicago new-music scene” by The New York Times, violist Doyle Armbrust is a founding member of the multi-Grammy-nominated Spektral Quartet. Motivating his work are the twin beliefs that 1) Curiosity should be the only prerequisite for a captivating musical encounter, and 2) For a musical encounter to be relevant, it must immediately connect to what it means to be alive today. 

This creed threads through his professional writing, found within the pages of Time Out Chicago, Chicago Magazine, and Crain’s Chicago Business, as well as program books at the Chicago, St. Louis, and Cincinnati Symphonies. 

Doyle is currently violist for new-music supergroup The Grossman Ensemble as well as host and creator of The Society of Disobedient Listeners pre-concert discussion series at UMS on the University of Michigan campus. 

He is conspicuously proud to serve on the board of directors for D-Composed, a Black ensemble based in Chicago and driven by a mission to uplift and empower society by providing a platform for exceptional Black music.