MARIAM ADAM, born in Monterey, California to an Egyptian father and a Mexican mother, has lived between New York, Paris and now Nashville, a composite of influences that has shaped her musicianship and collaborations worldwide. She has performed with Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Paquito D’Rivera, Yo-Yo Ma, Eric le Sage, Claudio Bohorquez, Simon Shaheen, Kuss Quartet, Gil Kalish, Ann Marie-McDermott, the Zaide Quartet and in such venues and series as Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl, Walt Disney Hall, Jordan Hall, Kennedy Center, San Francisco Performances, Wigmore Hall, Paris’ Cité de la Musique, Beijing Performing Arts Center, Bremen Musikfest, Jazz à Marciac, Colmar Festival and France’s pre-eminent Folle Journee.
A founding and former member of the twice Grammy-nominated woodwind quintet, Imani Winds, she maintained an active international touring schedule for over 18 years. The quintet is a pillar in the classical music community, unparalleled in developing the wind quintet to a new level through virtuosity, style, repertoire and engaging programs. Their albums and legacy have won numerous awards and continue to influence wind chamber music through their commissions and original compositions. In November 2021 she reunited with members of the Imani Winds to premier Valerie Coleman’s “Phenomenal Women” in London with the Chineke! Orchestra.
The original members continue to reunite for Tanglewood Festival’s BUTI program in recital and masterclasses.
Mariam has been invited for solo recitals and chamber music concerts in such prestigious venues and festivals as Chamber Music Lincoln Center, Burlington’s Lane Series, Chamber Music Northwest, Skaneatles Festival, Chenango Festival, Fontana Arts, La Folle Journée Festival in Nantes, Théâtre de l’Archipel in Perpignan, Musica da Curitiba-Brazil, and various festivals and series in the United-States, Europe and South America. She has performed and toured with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and France’s satire icon, Gaspard Proust. She has soloed with the Orchestre de Pau, Sacramento Symphony, the Monterey Symphony, the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, Prince George Philharmonic, the Appassionato Ensemble in France and the Prairie Winds Festival as well as a return special guest at the International Clarinet Association “ClarFest” opening concert.
Since 2016 she has been visiting principal clarinetist for the London-based Chineke! Ensemble and orchestra with return visits to BBC’s “Tune In” with Sean Rafferty. They have become a pivotal ensemble in the United Kingdom and Europe championing works of new composers while establishing a firm identity of the new face of classical music.
Her TransAtlantic Ensemble, with Evelyn Ulex, an official Steinway Ensemble, specializes in commissions of crossover styles, standard repertoire and presents their concerts in unique formats throughout Europe, South and Central America and the United States. They have been featured on NPR, Berlin Radiofunkt and their latest album, “Havana Moon” was on Sirius XM’s2016 “Best of Symphony” Hall with original works by Valerie Coleman, Jeff Scott, Paquito D’Rivera and Miguel del Aguila.
Her AdZel Duo with clarinetist Stephanie Zelnick has been performing works celebrating their combined heritage from the Middle East through commissions and ‘informances’. They have been invited to give their presentations at Juilliard, Yale School of Music, Indiana University and have been featured at the International Clarinet Conference, Costa Rican Clarinet Festival, Prairie Winds Festival as well as the world premiere of “Dreams” Double concerto in Los Angeles in 2019.
As an educator she has been invited to give master classes throughout the United States, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia, France, China, Singapore and Germany at the top conservatories. She has been Ensemble-In-Residence at the Mannes School of Music in New York and several schools of music throughout the states with the Imani Winds.
Mariam has recorded eight albums with Imani Winds (Koch Classics, E1) before being signed by EMI for their exciting wind quintet version of the Rite of Spring which was selected in 2013’s Best of iTunes. She can also be heard on Chick Corea’s “The Continents”, Wayne Shorter’s “Without a Net”, Steve Coleman’s “Ascension to Light”, “Letters From Armenia” with Varduhi Yeritsyan and Mohammed Fairouz‘s “Native Informant”. TransAtlantic Ensemble last CD “Havana Moon” with the Steinway & Sons Record Label received Sirius XM’s Symphony Hall listing as “BEST RECORDINGS OF 2016”. Her last AdZel Duo album “AdZel Duo” and was featured on American Public Media’s “Performance Today”. She has recorded six albums with the Chineke! Orchestra on NMC, Signum and Orchid labels including “Rhapsody in Blue” with Stewart Goodyear.
Mariam Adam is an exclusive Selmer Paris Artist, Vandoren Artist and has served on the Executive Board for Chamber Music America as Vice President. She is faculty at the YOLA Institute with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Selmer Academy, Chineke! Players Committee and is currently Assistant Clarinet Professor at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University where she is a member of the Blair Wind Quintet.