About

An excerpt from the liner notes to Synthesis by producer/composer, Ryan Truesdell:

The string quartet is a polysemantic entity encompassing both an instrumentation, genre, and musical form, and since the time of Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), has become immortalized as one of the true tests of a musician’s mastery of the compositional art. Without the cover of a large orchestra to mask any imperfections, a string quartet requires that the composer synthesize the core elements in music (melody, harmony, and rhythm) with just four equal voices – two violins, viola, and cello. This lack of sonic camouflage is just one of the reasons the string quartet has served as a compositional rite of passage for almost 250 years, and continues to be an ideal vehicle for developing the breadth of a composer’s skill.

Despite being standard in the classical world, this touchstone of composition has no equivalent in jazz. When a string quartet does appear in jazz, it is often merely to augment orchestrational color, barely scratching the surface of the diverse potential of the instrumentation, and relegating it to the role of background accompaniment. If jazz composers were inspired to fully wield the rigor and richness of this genre, would it prove to be an equally significant art form as its classical counterpart? 

I sought to answer that question in the fall of 2021, when the future of the large jazz ensemble was uncertain and I was desperate to find a catalyst for creative inspiration for my fellow composers and myself. Motivated by the necessity for a scaled-back instrumentation and influenced by the knowledge that many jazz composers derive inspiration from the string quartet writing of composers like Bartok, Brahms, and Beethoven, I decided to commission 13 of my fellow large ensemble jazz composers to each write an original work for string quartet. I hoped this assignment would spark a creative fire within us during that bleak and hopeless time, while simultaneously exploring the potential for a new genre of music. The commission outlined very few parameters in terms of length or style, with the hope that each composer’s singular voice would be amplified through the lens of the quartet, while challenging them to write with a new palette of colors and textures. 

To be able to bring this music to life with authenticity and virtuosity, I needed to find a very specific set of string players. Each had to be armed with the technical skill required to execute this challenging new music, and to be stylistically diverse enough to embrace the innovation at the intersection of jazz, classical, and any number of other genres. My first call was to violinist, Sara Caswell, who listened patiently to my idea for a commissioning project, and over the course of our three-hour phone call, helped me map out a rough plan and narrow down the musicians, and reassured me that this project was worthy of the time and energy it would take to pull off. 

In order to facilitate the Herculean task of learning and recording 17 brand new string quartets, we adopted the concept of “sessions'' for each new piece; three days of rehearsals and one day in the studio. These sessions enabled us to explore each new soundscape in a focused, intensive environment, allowing us to delve deep into each composer’s sonic world. The composers were invited to the sessions to workshop their commission, creating a collaborative atmosphere between composer and quartet. This element of the creative process allowed us to collectively shape and refine their new work, which was crucial in the development of each piece.

As you embark on the journey of this nearly three-hour collection of string quartets, I encourage you to approach the project almost as a book of short stories – each work individual, yet joined to the others by the connective tissue of medium and origin – culminating in the creation of what I can only describe as a new genre. To that end, it felt right to let the composers speak for themselves and give you a glimpse into how they approached this compositional venture. My hope is that this project is an introduction to brilliant composers you may not know, or an invitation to revisit the works of composers you know and love. To compare how their singular voices refract through the prism of this fertile instrumentation, and discover how these new pieces fit both within their own compositional oeuvres, and within the broader canon of the string quartet.

Ryan Truesdell
April 2024