Special promotional content provided by Agnes Scott. 

The James T. & Ella Rather Kirk Fund was established at Agnes Scott College in 1978 by alumna and trustee Mary Wallace Kirk `11.  The fund is used to expand and enrich the academic programs of art, history, literature, and philosophy and has allowed for a wide variety of concerts and visits by guest writers, scholars, and artists to campus.

“On average, we have about 6 Kirk-funded events a year,” says Leah Owenby `01, event coordinator for academic affairs, “everything from concerts to poetry readings to history lectures. I would estimate we’ve probably hosted over 200 events at this point because of Ms. Kirk’s gracious generosity. The fact that the Kirk fund is endowed makes it a lasting gift year after year.”

Nearly all Kirk events on campus are free and open to the public. These include special performances and opportunities to work with internationally distinguished musicians, artists, and scholars. On Thursday, March 2, Agnes Scott’s music department will welcome The Catalyst Quartet for the third Kirk concert this year.

The Catalyst Quartet, known for “perfect ensemble unity” and “unequaled class of execution” (Lincoln Journal Star), has toured widely throughout the United States and abroad, including sold-out performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., at Chicago’s Harris Theater, Miami’s New World Center, and Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall in New York.  The Catalyst Quartet combines a serious commitment to diversity and education with a passion for contemporary works.

Hailed by The New York Times at its Carnegie Hall debut as “invariably energetic and finely burnished… playing with earthy vigor,” the Grammy Award-winning Catalyst Quartet was founded by the internationally acclaimed Sphinx Organization in 2010. The ensemble (Karla Donehew Perez, violin; Abi Fayette, violin; Paul Laraia, viola; and Karlos Rodriguez, cello) believes in the unity that can be achieved through music and imagine their programs and projects with this in mind, redefining and reimagining the classical music experience.

For more information about this concert and other arts and cultural events on campus, please click here.