~Nois Saxophone Quartet brings In Dialogue to Nova Linea Musica: an evening of conversation between voices, gathering five works that explore how music speaks across difference, distance, and tradition. The program culminates in the world premiere of a Nova Linea Musica commission by Grammy-nominated composer Clarice Assad, who joins ~Nois on stage to celebrate the program.
Caroline Shaw's Entr'acte opens the evening, a luminous study in suspended time originally written for string quartet and reimagined here in ~Nois's own arrangement for saxophone quartet. Jessie Montgomery's Break Away follows, also arranged by ~Nois, drawing on Montgomery's gift for kinetic, deeply rhythmic dialogue between players and translating that energy into the distinctive timbral palette of four saxophones. Shawn Okpebholo's Game Theory brings the urgency and clarity that have made him one of the most-performed composers of his generation, and one with whom Nova Linea Musica and ~Nois share a long collaborative history.
At the heart of the program is the world premiere of Clarice Assad's Nova Linea Musica commission. Grammy-nominated, Latin Grammy-nominated, and one of the most prolific composer-performers of her generation, Assad writes music that draws fluently from Brazilian, classical, and improvisational traditions. Her presence on stage with ~Nois, performing alongside the ensemble for whom she has written, makes the title of the evening literal: composer and quartet, in dialogue. Assad is also a returning Nova Linea Musica voice this season and a longtime collaborator with the organization's circle of artists.
Nico Muhly's Ordinary Time closes the program, a work whose title gestures toward the liturgical season of patience and attention, and whose quiet structural logic offers the right resting note for an evening built on conversation.
~Nois, hailed as "fiendishly good and fiendishly goofy" by the Chicago Tribune, was founded in Chicago in 2016 and has since become "the American saxophone quartet du jour" (Musical America). The ensemble has premiered more than 120 new works and presented over 200 performances across 28 states, including appearances at LONG PLAY, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, Princeton Sound Kitchen, and the University of Chicago Presents Series. Their recordings include Is This ~Nois, Kinds of ~Nois (which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Classical Crossover chart), and the forthcoming What is ~Nois on New Amsterdam Records, with a Cedille Records release to follow in 2027 featuring world premiere recordings of works by Nico Muhly, Hans Thomalla, Bobby Ge, and Shawn Okpebholo.
As proud Chicagoans, ~Nois has made commissioning, community, and the cultivation of younger creators central to their work. They have presented over 60 world premieres by Chicago composers through their Curiosity Series and mentor local high school students each year through their Young Creators Fellowship. ~Nois is Julian Velasco, Natalia Warthen, Jordan Lulloff, and János Csontos.
Tonight's program continues Nova Linea Musica's commitment to resourcing the creation of new chamber music and bringing composers, performers, and listeners into the same room: an evening In Dialogue, with one of the most exciting saxophone quartets working today and one of the great composer-performers of our time.
