WHO WE ARE
District5 is a daring, Washington DC-based wind quintet that specializes in new music and new transcriptions. They are recipients of a 2016 Chamber Music America Classical Commissioning Grant with composer Evis Sammoutis and have recently performed at "The REACH" at the Kennedy Center, Dumbarton Oaks, U.S. Department of State, Library of Congress, Barns at Wolf Trap, DC Kosciuszko Foundation, and the Anderson House. In 2014, they gave the U.S. premiere of Karlheinz Stockhausen's ROTARY Woodwind Quintet.
District5 enjoys sharing its passion for chamber music with young musicians; they have designed educational programs for the Virginia Arts Fest, DC Youth Orchestra Program, the American Youth Philharmonic, and the UMBC Wind Ensemble. At the University of Maryland, District5 served as the Ensemble-in-Residence for both the 2016 and 2017 High School Music Academy and was UMD's Graduate Fellowship Wind Quintet from 2013-15.
District5 recently released their debut album, the complete Chopin preludes, transcribed by David Plylar. This exciting new album is available on iTunes, Spotify, Youtube, CD Baby, and Amazon.
D5 MEMBERS
LAURA KAUFMAN MOWRY
Laura Kaufman Mowry is a soloist, orchestral, and chamber musician who has been hailed by the Washington Post for “absolutely gorgeous flute-playing.” Laura has performed with a variety of renowned ensembles, including the National Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Alexandria Symphony, Fairfax Symphony, Annapolis Symphony, and Smithsonian Chamber Players among many others.
Laura is dedicated to fostering the talents of young musicians. She maintains a private flute studio, and has coached wind players at the University of Maryland at Baltimore County, American Youth Philharmonic, and the University of Maryland High School Academy. Laura has received national recognition from prize-winning performances at the National Flute Association’s Young Artist Competition, National Society of Arts and Letters Wind Competition, New York Flute Club Competition, Flute Society of Washington Young Artist Competition, Pasadena Showcase Instrumental Competition, among others. Her experiences have inspired her to assist other musicians with competition preparation and overcoming performance anxiety.
Laura holds degrees from Eastman School of Music, The Colburn School, and the University of Maryland.
ALISON LOWELL
Alison Lowell is a passionate arts advocate. During her tenure as Principal Oboist of the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra in South Africa, she premiered new works at the National Arts Festival, Classic FM Johannesburg, the Unyazi Electronic Music Festival and was a featured concerto soloist. In 2009, Alison was the recipient of the prestigious “Investing in Artists” grant from the Center for Cultural Innovation for an extended-range oboe. She founded the “Loboe Project” as a series of commissions and performances of works written specifically for her; she presented the "Loboe" through concerts at the 2013 (Redlands, California) and 2015 (Tokyo, Japan) International Double Reed Society Conferences. Alison has performed at many festivals such as the Lucerne Music Festival (Switzerland), Ensemble Modern Festival Orchestra (Austria), Spoleto Festival USA and the Sarasota Music Festival, among many others. As Director and Oboist of the new music ensemble Out of Context, she organized four national tours and received a grant from the “Meet the Composer Foundation.”
An active chamber musician, Alison is a member of District5, the Interface New Music Collective and the LeDroit Chamber Players. She has performed with the National Gallery of Art New Music Ensemble, the 21st Century Consort, the Washington Metropolitan Opera, the Monday Evening Concert Series and the Baltimore Composers Forum. As a baroque oboist, she has worked with ensembles such as the Washington Bach Consort, Magnolia Baroque, Publick Musick and the San Diego Bach Collegium. Alison holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, the University of Southern California and her Doctorate from the University of Maryland.
AMY EICH
Originally from Arlington Heights, IL, clarinetist Amanda Eich moved to Washington, D.C. in 2017 to join the United States Navy Band, where she currently serves as acting E-flat clarinet. She holds a Bachelor of Music and a Bachelor of Science with honors in water resources engineering from the University of Illinois, and a Master of Music with an Arts Leadership Program Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. Her teachers include Kenneth Grant, David Harris and John Bruce Yeh.
Amanda was a two-time fellow at the Marrowstone Music Festival in Bellingham, WA, and participated in the Aurora Chamber Music Festival in Trollhättan, Sweden, where she took part in a masterclass series with Yehuda Gilad. She has performed locally with the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Choralis Foundation, and in several recitals with soprano duo-partner Amy Broadbent.
In her free time, Amanda enjoys reading, skiing, and sharing pictures of her dogs.
MATTHEW GREGOIRE
Bassoonist Matthew Gregoire is originally from Dover, New Hampshire. He moved to the DC area in the spring of 2020 to join the bassoon section of “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band, with whom he has performed at prominent venues in the DMV area, including The White House, and most notably, at the U.S. Capitol for the inauguration of President Biden in 2021. Prior to joining the Band, he was a member of The Orchestra Now at Bard College, and was a regular substitute for the Springfield Symphony in Massachusetts. He has also participated in numerous summer programs around the country, including the Chautauqua Music Festival, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Vermont Mozart Festival, and Colorado College Summer Music Festival.
Matthew holds degrees in performance from the Eastman School of Music and the Yale School of Music, where he studied with John Hunt and Frank Morelli, respectively.
Matthew joined District5 in February of 2022.
Josh Thompson is a horn player hailing from Spring, Texas. An avid chamber musician, he is a member of the local wind quintet District5.
He has held fellowships at various summer programs including the Tanglewood Music Center, the Norfolk (CT) Chamber Festival, and the Bowdoin International Music Festival. He also attended the New York String Orchestra Seminar, performing in Carnegie Hall.
A graduate of the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University and the Yale School of Music, Thompson studied with Gail Williams, Jonathan Boen, and William Purvis.