In September 2010, I went to hear the Boston Cello Quartet for the first time at Longy School of Music in Cambridge. I had never heard a cello quartet before, and the sound of four cellos together made an immediate impression on me.

The quartet was formed by four cellists of the Boston Symphony Orchestra: Blaise Déjardin, Adam Esbensen, Alexandre Lecarme, and Mihail Jojatu. Their repertoire moved freely between classical arrangements and contemporary music, exploring the unusually wide range and possibilities of the cello.

Waltz of the Black Ants

After hearing the quartet, I decided I wanted to write something specifically for them.

Waltz of the Black Ants was my first composition for cello quartet. The piece grew out of my background in jazz composition, but writing for four cellos gave me an entirely new sound world to explore.

The difficult part was not writing the music. It was sending it to them.

I was shy and had never approached an ensemble like this before, but eventually I gathered the courage to send an email. To my surprise, they responded warmly and decided to perform the piece.

In July 2011, Waltz of the Black Ants received its world premiere at Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood, beginning a three-year collaboration with the quartet. The original Tanglewood program lists the work as a world premiere dedicated to the Boston Cello Quartet.

From one piece to three

Following the premiere, the quartet continued performing Waltz of the Black Ants throughout Massachusetts.

I then wrote two more works for them: The Life of Birds in 2012 and Four Crayons in 2013. Both were premiered at Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood and became part of the quartet’s repertoire.

Together, the three pieces became an important early chapter in my development as a composer:

Waltz of the Black Ants    2011

The Life of Bird    2012

Four Crayons     2013

Pictures

In October 2012, the Boston Cello Quartet recorded Waltz of the Black Ants for their debut album, Pictures. The album was released in February 2013 and brought together the quartet’s wide-ranging repertoire, from classical arrangements to contemporary works. Waltz of the Black Ants appears as track 14.

The album later reached the Top 50 of the iTunes Classical chart, making the recording one of the earliest major milestones of my career as a composer.