Praised by the Cleveland Plain Dealer as “remarkably poised...sensitive and majestic,” violinist Dr. Laura Colgate enjoys a versatile career as a chamber and orchestral musician, soloist, educator, curator, activist, and innovator. Having performed worldwide
across Europe, Asia, and North America, she has performed on stages including the Barbican Centre, Kennedy Center, and multiple appearances at Carnegie Hall.

Laura currently lives in Takoma Park, MD and is Concertmaster of The National Philharmonic at Strathmore in Bethesda, MD. She formerly served as Concertmaster of the Greenville Symphony Orchestra in South Carolina and the El Paso Symphony Orchestra. She frequently performs as a substitute with several major orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, and is a member of the IRIS Collective in her hometown, Memphis, TN. She is also the curator for the
Strathmore Music in the Mansion series, and formerly the curator for National Philharmonic Chamber Music Series, and the Chamber Music Series at The Clarice
Smith Performing Arts Center. Laura formerly taught Financial Entrepreneurship for Arts Leaders as well as adjunct Violin Professor at the University of Maryland (UMD), and currently serves as Lecturer of Chamber Music and Chamber Music Coordinator for
Strings at UMD School of Music.

She completed her Doctorate from the UMD School of Music, focusing her thesis on Women Composers. Laura is passionate about being an innovator in the world of classical music, and in March 2018 co-founded the Boulanger Initiative, an advocacy organization for women composers based in Maryland, for which she holds the position of Executive and Artistic Director. The Initiative champions the works of women and gender-marginalized composers through consulting, performance, education, and commissions, and launched the Boulanger Initiative Database of Repertoire by Women and Gender Marginalized Composers, the largest of its kind with over 11,000 works included, in March 2023.