Poppies, tied deeply to sleep, peace, and death, has long been a symbol to fallen soldiers. My second string quartet, “poppies bursting into bloom in the wind and rain”, is a response to Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae’s war poem In Flanders Fields. May the world be at peace forever and may you and my heart be at peace forever. The work is dedicated to those spirits who have suffered from war.

First performance:
by the JACK Quartet, at Merkin Hall NYC on March 10 2021

Poppies bursting into bloom in the wind and rain (2020)

a patina is a thin layer of rust, tarnish or film that forms on the surface of copper, bronze, silver and similar metals from prolonged oxidation and exposure to other natural elements.

[this piece is meant to recreate that distinct sensation]

"patina fragments" was performed and recorded by loadbang as part of the 2021 Divergent Studio.

patina fragments (2021) - for chamber ensemble [loadbang]

Sensitive Chaos (2010) 
for E-Guitarre, Cello, Trumpet, Trombone, Piano and two Percussions Players
composed by Malika KISHINO, www.malika-kishino.com
Score : EDIZIONI SUVINI ZERBONI, www.esz.it/it/contatti
https://en.schott-music.com/shop/sensitive-chaos-no323166.html
Performed by Ensemble Ascolta
World premiere : 23.11. 2010, Theaterhaus Stuttgart

Sensitive Chaos (2010) for 7 Players

Invocation is Caprice No. 9 from The Caprice Project, Volume 1, by Timothy Hagen. The piece is meant to serve as a prelude to an event and includes different choices for the performer to either excite or soothe the audience. This version ("up") is intended to excite.

Caprice No. 9 for solo flute: Invocation ("up" version)

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April 11, 2023
Eclipses
electronic fixed media (stereo)

Eclipses

As a vocalist, I have long been obsessed with the nuanced resonance of the human voice, and in particular the timbral variation and inflection inherent to many folk vocal traditions. These highly expressive micro-variations deliver intense pangs of emotion that can be sung in the subtlest of ways. They are distilled, fleeting moments of suffering and joy that fall between the cracks of melody and harmony. This piece is about the music that exists between the notes.

One wish, your honey lips (2016) // Emissary Quartet

May 5th, 2017, JACK Quartet - Witten's Johanniskirche (DE). Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik

more infos: https://www.oscarbianchi.com/compositions/pathos-of-distance/

Pathos Of Distance, String Quartet No 2

'Pentaptych' is a collection of 9 new tracks from Ryan Lott, taken from the ballet piece commissioned by the Philbrook Museum of Art and presented by Tulsa Ballet. The original evening-length work was choreographed by Ma Cong and included a live, original painting created by Eric Sall on-stage ('Pentaptych''s cover is another of Sall’s pieces). It
premiered in September of 2018 at the Tulsa Ballet Theatre. About the score, Lott writes: "In dance, music is as much the space in which movement occurs as is the room itself. Those of us who write music for dance are, in that sense, architects. For 'Pentaptych,' I sought to create a series of resonant spaces for Ma’s choreography, and for the generation and regeneration of Eric’s paintings. Each musical movement explores a consistent instrumental palette, led by the violin (and its viola and cello counterparts), in various stages of abstraction. We hear familiar sounds accompanied by unknown colors, just beyond the reach of familiarity. My hope is that navigating through this array of “rooms” feels as much like an exploration as a homecoming."

Pentaptych

A Softer Blade

Based on Hossein Alizadeh's "Chargah in 7 beats" composition. 

Credits: 
Mahmood Schricker -- Electric Setar 
Kimia Koochakzadeh-Yazdi -- Electronics 
Reza Moghaddas -- Mix and Mastering

Oscillating Alizadeh || Mahmood Schricker x Kimia Koochakzadeh-Yazdi

a string quartet is like a flock of birds (2020) 
nine meditations and dances for string quartet

Commissioned by Kinetic Ensemble in Fall 2020

Performed Nov. 1st, 2020
Kinetic Ensemble - Textures of Change
Live Oak Friends Meeting House
Houston, TX

I've been thinking a lot recently about togetherness and apartness; how while we grieve and reckon with the collective trauma of the pandemic we've been isolated from one another, but at the same time we're still struggling to find new ways to connect. And in a certain sense, a string quartet epitomizes these ideas: it's a coming together of disparate things, fusing solo virtuosity with a more communal, receptive way of playing. All four parts are equal, and each player has to be both a follower and a leader. And I've also thinking about how wrong it feels to be creating something slow and somber to be performed now, when a return to music-making should really be a cause for joy and celebration. a string quartet is like a flock of birds is structured in 9 interlocking movements, with slow, reflective meditations alternating with fast, rhythmic dances. The whole quartet is focused on the musical idea of togetherness: the 4 parts fit together like a puzzle, and only when all the parts are fit together do melodies emerge. Each section in the piece is about the players slowly finding each other: sometimes overlapping, sometimes drifting apart into different kinds of motion, circling around each other like birds in flight. 

https://www.paulnovakmusic.com/
https://www.kineticensemble.org/

Image: Photo by Daniel Biber

a string quartet is like a flock of birds (2020) for string quartet

Composer  |  Flutist

https://www.zacherymeiermusic.com/

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Zachery S. Meier