Percussionist Britton-René Collins has dedicated her artistry to shaping an equitable community in which all musicians can thrive. Britton-René is a winner of the 2020 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition, receiving the Ambassador Prize for exceptional musicianship and demonstrating an active passion for creating social change through her music.
A Grand Prize winner of the 2022 Yamaha Young Performing Artists Competition and the 2021 Chicago International Music Competition, Britton-René has performed as a soloist in the United States, Canada, and Europe. She has made several concerto appearances, including with the Grammy Award-winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Valdosta Symphony, and the Meridian Symphony. In addition to her active solo career, Britton-René enjoys life as a chamber musician with New York City-based Excelsis Percussion Quartet, and is also the co-founder of Vision Duo alongside violinist Ariel Horowitz. As an advocate for new music, Britton-René’s current projects involve premiering new compositions and commissions for multi-percussion and marimba.
Recent highlights include attending the soundSCAPE new music composition and performance exchange in Italy, making her Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC) artist debut, and participating in the Banff Centre’s Evolution: Classical program. As an artist, Britton-René proudly endorses Vic Firth sticks and mallets, Zildjian cymbals, Marimba One instruments, and Remo drumheads.
Britton-René began playing piano at age five, and discovered percussion at eight years old when she became intrigued by the drum set. She quickly fell in love with playing rock, jazz, and pop music on the drums, which ignited her enthusiasm to explore various percussion instruments and styles of music. She received her B.M. at the University of Toronto with Aiyun Huang, Beverley Johnston, and John Rudolph, where she won the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition. She received her M.M. at the University of Michigan in 2023, where her primary instructors included Doug Perkins and Ian Antonio.
August 2023
Please note: Biographies are based on information provided to the CSO by the artists or their representatives. More current information may be available on websites of the artists or their management.
