Sterling Elliott, David Portillo, and Kalena Bovell.
The Sphinx Organization has announced the recipients of the 2024 Sphinx Medals of Excellence: conductor Kalena Bovell, cellist Sterling Elliott, and tenor David Portillo. The Medal of Excellence recognizes extraordinary Black and Latinx classical musicians who, early in their careers, demonstrate artistic excellence, outstanding work ethic, determination, and an ongoing commitment to leadership and their communities. The award is given by the Sphinx Organization, the social justice organization dedicated to transforming lives through the power of diversity in the arts, and comes with a $50,000 career grant. Cellist Sterling Elliott is a 2021 Avery Fisher Career Grant recipient and winner of the Senior Division of the 2019 National Sphinx Competition. Elliott has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, among others. Elliott was featured as an artist on the rise in the Winter 2022 issue of Symphony magazine. Conductor Kalena Bovell received a 2023 Sphinx Medal of Excellence and a 2022-2024 Taki Alsop Conducting Fellowship. In the 2023-24 season, the Panamanian-American conductor led the Louisiana Philharmonic, Cincinnati Symphony and the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera. She conducted the Chineke! Orchestra at the BBC Proms and led Kevin Thomas’s Firebird as a part of the Kennedy Center’s “Reframing the Narrative.” Tenor David Portillo has performed leading roles at the Metropolitan Opera, Washington National Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Dallas Opera, Deutsche Opera Berlin, the Glyndebourne Festival, Opera Philadelphia, and the Wiener Staatsoper. He has also appeared with the Minnesota Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Orchestra, and Washington Concert Opera.
