Founder of Sciolino Artist Management to Close Agency 

As she plans to retire, Marianne Sciolino will gradually be closing her artist management firm

Sciolino Artist Management (SAM) was founded in 2005 by Marianne Sciolino to develop young artists’ careers, particularly those of Black and Latinx string players. 

Soon to retire and wind down her agency, Sciolino has been helping those on her diverse roster to sign with new artist management agencies over the past year, reported Musical America, 

Since then, the artists she represents have joined agencies including Suòno Artist Management, Monica Felkel Creative Partners, Blu Ocean Arts, Dinan Arts, Arabella Arts, and Epstein Fox Performances. 

Musical America added that Sciolino holds masters degrees in Spanish and finance, and was in her mid-fifties when she launched SAM, propelled by her ability to recognize emerging artists with great potential. 

Among the artists she signed included The Harlem Quartet; pianists Michael Stephen Brown, Misha Dichter, and Gabriela Martinez; violinists Elena Urioste, Melissa White, and VC Artists Tessa Lark, and Francisco Fullana; cellist Nicolas Canellakis; and clarinetist Kenon Azmah.

The Harlem Quartet was her first signing, and she credits its founder and Sphinx Founder Aaron Dworkin with connecting the ensemble with SAM. 

Additionally, Sciolino put the Harlem Quartet in touch with Chick Corea, which resulted in the quartet going on an international tour and winning a GRAMMY award. In 2015, she linked the quartet with composer Aldo López Gavilán, who continues to collaborate with the ensemble. 

A native of Buffalo, Sciolino is a longtime friend of Buffalo Philharmonic’s Music Director JoAnn Falletta who has hired many SAM artists including Piotr Gajewski, Martinez, Urioste, Lark, Fullana, Nicolas Altstaedt, and Amy Porter. Lastly, one of SAM’s former artists, soprano Eileen Strempel, has since been appointed the inaugural dean of UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music.