Breathless (2021-22) for percussion quartet

Breathless was premiered on March 1, 2022 as part of Third Coast Percussion’s residency at Northwestern University. It was performed on a program alongside my colleagues at NU Sam Perlman, Leo Discenza, Luis Fernando Amaya, and Ben Zucker.

The piece was written for Third Coast Percussion while I was living abroad in Quito, Ecuador. The title is a nod to French New Wave cinema, where the jump-cut was popularized as an expressive tool. In my recent music, I have become fascinated with the idea of a “jump-cut” as a formal idea. I’m attracted to the energy that sudden, abrupt changes can infuse in the music and in the listening experience. It’s a piece that never rests, that feels constantly on the verge of exploding; in the music, there are fast shifts and unexpected juxtapositions between batteries of volatile rhythmic material and the scintillatingly mysterious sounds of the melodica’s fluttered pitch clusters. There are transformations from non-metric relays at the outset to very groove-driven patterns, while gradual shifts in emphasis from woods to metals to skins simultaneously unfold.

I’m grateful to have had the chance to work with Third Coast Percussion. They are truly incredible players and wonderful people! Listen to their recording from the premier and see the score below.