ALLYSON COHEN

Allyson Cohen is a violinist, educator, and arts leader dedicated to reimagining the role of classical music through community-centered performance and engagement. She is the founder and executive director of Unison Chamber Music Collective, a Southeast Michigan nonprofit that brings chamber music to shelters, recovery centers, and correctional facilities while championing accessibility, connection, and the inclusion of historically underrepresented voices in classical music.

As Assistant Director of Programs for Unison's partnership with the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre &Dance, Allyson helps provide resources and connect student groups with Unison, offering mentorship, community placements, and performance opportunities outside of the traditional concert hall for woodwind, brass, string, and piano students. She oversees these partnerships while mentoring students in audience engagement and community-centered performance and has presented workshops at the University of Michigan on audience engagement and trauma-informed performance practices. In recognition of this work, Unison received the University of Michigan EXCEL Prize for social impact and arts entrepreneurship.

Allyson recently earned her Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan, where she studied with Professor Danielle Belen, and will begin doctoral studies in violin performance at Stony Brook University this fall. She previously earned her Bachelor of Music from the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer University, studying with Amy Moretti, David Kim, and Robert McDuffie, and worked extensively in chamber music with longtime mentor Annie Fullard.

As a performer, Allyson has appeared in recital at Carnegie Hall and the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, performed as a substitute violinist with The Philadelphia Orchestra, and currently performs with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra. She has collaborated with distinguished artists including Lisa Batiashvili, Clive Greensmith, Victoria Chiang, and members of the Cavani, Borromeo, Emerson, Ehnes, and Tokyo String Quartets. Her quartet has received prizes at national chamber music competitions, and she has been featured on NPR's From the Top and recorded for SiriusXM and PBS.

In her spare time, Allyson is a marathon runner, cat mom, knitter, and passionate vegan.