Stars and Constellations (2023)
Quinsin Nachoff – Tenor Saxophone
Mark Helias – Acoustic Bass
Dan Weiss – Drums
Bergamot Quartet
Ledah Finck – Violin I
Sarah Thomas – Violin II
Amy Huimei Tan – Viola
Irène Han – Cello
The Rhythm Method, additional contributors on Pendulum
Josh Henderson – Violin I
Erica Dicker – Violin II
Leah Asher – Viola
Meaghan Burke – Cello
Matt Holman – Conductor
Stars and Constellations (Adhyâropa Records, 2023) features Nachoff on tenor saxophone with bassist Mark Helias and drummer Dan Weiss, joined by the Bergamot Quartet throughout and The Rhythm Method string quartet on “Pendulum.”
Three extended works draw on mythology and scientific models of motion. “Scorpio,” commissioned by the Penderecki String Quartet, unfolds from pointillist strings into dense ensemble interplay. “Pendulum” places two string quartets in opposition, stretching time between broad gestures and near-stasis. “Sagittarius” traces arcing trajectories mapped from the constellation itself.
Physicist Stephen Morris translated the constellations into 3D models that informed harmonic and melodic material, extending a collaboration that also underpins Winding Tessellations and Patterns from Nature.
“A concentration of written, organized music, with a well-defined structure but which sounds free like few others.”
—Vincenzo Roggero, All About Jazz ★★★★½
“Finding an exceptional connection between improvisation and notated music, Nachoff continues to forge a path of his own, moving in a revelatory line of action that separates him from other creatives.”
—Filipe Freitas, JazzTrail ★★★★
“The sounds evoke flashes of light, shades of darkness… this is contemporary music not bound by genre, and Quinsin Nachoff displays a true PUNK ETHOS.”
—OUTSIDELEFT
Liner Notes by Michael Ullman
