Sebastian Ruth

Sebastian Ruth is an American violinist, violist, and music educator, and a 2010 MacArthur Fellow, receiving the award for "forging a new, multifaceted role beyond the concert hall for the twenty-first-century musician."

He is the founder of Community MusicWorks in Providence, Rhode Island, which works with young people in Providence neighborhoods “teaching them how to play string instruments".{{cite news | last =Etter | first =Lauren| title =Genius Gets Its Reward: Bee Breeder, 'The Wire' Writer and 21 Others Win $500,000 MacArthur Grants| newspaper =Wall Street Journal | date = September 28, 2010| url =https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703694204575518081089724838 | access-date =December 31, 2015 }}

In 2010, the program had 115 students, 51% Latino and 16% African-American.{{cite book | last =Schoenbaum| first =David | title =The Violin: A Social History of the World's Most Versatile Instrument| publisher =W. W. Norton & Company| date = 2012 | url =https://archive.org/details/violinsocialhist0000scho | url-access =registration| page =[https://archive.org/details/violinsocialhist0000scho/page/284 284]| quote =Sebastian Ruth MacArthur.| isbn =9780393089608}}

Ruth's concept for Community MusicWorks "is to be as intrinsic to the fabric of a community as a clinic, library or church."{{cite news | title =Violinist and Pianist win MacArthur "Genius" Grants| newspaper = WQXR| location =Newark, New Jersey| date = September 28, 2015| url =http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/96203-violinist-and-pianist-win-macarthur-genius-grants/| access-date = December 31, 2015 }} Accordingly, the group "provides its students – who range from elementary to high school – with a long-term instrument loan, mentoring relationships with teachers, as well as opportunities through workshops and field trips."

Ruth is a 1997 graduate of Brown University and a faculty member at the Yale School of Music.{{cite web | url =http://music.yale.edu/faculty/ruth-sebastian/| title =Community engagement: Sebastian Ruth| website = Yale School of Music| publisher =Yale University }}

He also received a 2010 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award from Michelle Obama.

In 2012, Strings Magazine listed him as among "the 25 most influential people in the string music world".{{cite web | url =https://www.macfound.org/fellows/39/

| title =MacArthur Fellows / Meet the Class of 2010: Sebastian Ruth - Violist, Violinist, and Music Educator | date = 2010 | website =MacArthur Foundation | publisher =John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation}}