COA String Faculty

Violist and violinist Kathleen Crabtree enjoys a varied career as a soloist, chamber and orchestral musician, and pedagogue. While studying at the Eastman School of Music, she won the concerto competition with Margaret Brouwer’s new viola concerto and subsequently performed it at the 2012 International Viola Congress. This began a love affair with contemporary music, and she continues to perform new works on the Sounds Modern concert series in Texas and the New Music on the Bayou festival in Louisiana.

An artist of diverse musical interests, she has appeared with the Ft. Worth Symphony Orchestra, Renée Fleming, the Eagles, Evanescence, Josh Groban, and Michael Bublé. She traveled to Spain on musical missions trips in 2023 and 2025 with the Christian cover band Texas Mosaix, and has also performed in Argentina's Teatro Colón. Her playing can be heard on the posthumous DMX album Let Us Pray: Chapter X, Kory Reeder’s works on Kuyin Records, Full Spectrum Records, and Edition Wandelsweiser, and upcoming albums by Schoenberg and Christian violin metalcore band Drive Thru Society. She has been featured on KXT's Homegrown Music Show in DFW, Colorado Public Radio, and on CBS (KCNC in Colorado), and plays with the Abilene Philharmonic and Allen Philharmonic.

Kathleen holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music (BM), Cleveland Institute of Music (MM), and University of North Texas (DMA). She teaches at Abilene Christian University and Hardin-Simmons University.

Originally from Chicago, Adrienne Banks began studying cello at the age of 9. She graduated with honors from Illinois State University, where she earned a B.M. in music performance and music therapy, studying cello under Dr. Adriana La Rosa Ransom. She was a member of the Symphony of Oak Park and River Forest before moving to Texas in 2016.

Adrienne has traveled around the United States and Europe to perform, including orchestral tours throughout France and Germany and as a cellist with the International Chamber Music Institute in Bulgaria. She has had the pleasure of playing for hundreds of live events, including SXSW musical festival and concert tours for major artists. She has also recorded for various artists’ albums and done live and commercial work for Amazon Prime. Adrienne has a passion for collaborating with theatre artists, having performed for numerous theatrical productions, including as the company cellist for the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.

Adrienne has been a board-certified music therapist (MT-BC) since 2014 and has worked with a wide variety of individuals and groups to bring healing through music. She is a member of Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity, having served in multiple leadership positions and earning the Regional Alumnae Leadership Award for excellence in music and community service. She currently performs as a core cellist with Sienna String Quartet based in Austin, TX, as a substitute cellist with the Abilene Philharmonic Orchestra, and teaches cello for Abilene ISD while maintaining a private studio.

Coming from South Texas, John Hunter has performed with many of the regional orchestras and is an active teacher and freelancer in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Some of the orchestras he has performed with include Plano, Fort Worth, Arkansas, Shreveport, National Philharmonic and Dallas Chamber Symphonies.

John was a winner of the UT Arlington Concerto Competition, where he performed Giovanni Bottesini’s Concerto #2 in B minor for Double Bass and Orchestra. He has also attended festivals such as Brevard Music Center, PRISMA, Aruba Symphony Festival and National Music Festival and has performed with members of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra alongside Pinchas Zukerman as part of their collaboration with Southern Methodist University.

John has studied with notable bassists such as Brian Perry, Jack Unzicker, Tyler Shepherd, Paul Unger and has performed in classes for Paul Ellison, Ed Barker, Craig Brown, Daniel Tosky, George Speed and many others. He holds a bachelors in Music Education from UT Rio Grande Valley, Masters in Music from UT Arlington and a Performance Certificate from Southern Methodist University.