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String Quartet Debuts Native American Student Compositions
By Rachel Borok
Renowned modern string quartet ETHEL has challenged the traditions of concert music for over 10 years. In their newest album, the New York-based group debuts 16 pieces by young Native American students. The result of collaboration between Thunderbird Records and the Oklahoma-based Chickasaw Nation, OSHTALI is the first-ever album to be comprised entirely of Native American student compositions.
The 11 composers, ranging in age from 13 to 21, studied at the Chickasaw Summer Arts Academy during summers 2008 and ’09. Aside from music composition, participants can also study acting, writing, dancing, singing, video production, visual arts, or textile design. One of the students from the art program painted the design that was chosen for the cover of the album.
Producer Alan Bise, the owner of Thunderbird Records, was intrigued by the unique viewpoint the students had to offer. “They are surprisingly sophisticated,” says Bise, who saw the heritage and culture of the Chickasaw Nation reflected in their music. “These student works captured my attention by both their complexity and their simplicity.”
The students joined ETHEL at Oklahoma City University’s Wanda L. Bass School of Music, where they were closely involved in the entire process of recording the album. “It was a great experience to get to work with a group of such prestige,” says 13-year-old Aubrey Halford.
This is not the first time the members of ETHEL have worked alongside Native American students. They have been the resident quartet for the Native American Composer Apprentice Project (NACAP) for over 5 years. As such, they visit schools in the Navajo and Hopi Nations and help the student composers refine their work. They then showcase all of the students’ pieces at the Grand Canyon Music Festival. The annual festival spans 3 weeks in late summer, with upwards of 300 people in attendance at each concert.
“We’ve been so enriched by the people, cultures, and sounds of the Chickasaw Nation,” says of ETHEL violist Ralph Farris. “We feel utterly compelled to share this amazing, beautiful music.”
Learn more about the album at Thunderbird Records.