Counter Paint
Developed by Pascal Le Boeuf, Danny Clay, and the Friction Quartet, “Counter Paint: The Art of Fugue” is an interdisciplinary collaborative work that incorporates elements of classical music, collaborative painting, graphic notation, and improvisation to document a community of like minded musicians through the lens of a party game.
released December 18, 2020
available on Bandcamp
Friction Quartet
rising
How long will Earth be habitable for our kids?
A love letter to our fragile planet, "Rising" refers to the increasing water and temperatures that threaten to consume our human settlements and the wilderness around us. It is also a rallying cry to mobilize our community against this catastrophe. This is our planet to love, and our planet to lose. We hope that this album will provide an environment for you to reflect on the power and vulnerability of our planet Earth.
release Nov. 6, 2020
available on Bandcamp
Friction Quartet
palettes
Palettes is an album of original compositions from composer Taylor Joshua Rankin. The debut album is a blend of mixed-genre, contemporary-classical music with post-minimalist influences, ranging from acoustic to electro-acoustic works for chamber groups.
These pieces were written specifically for this record; an amalgamation of all things I am passionate about and seek to experience on a daily basis. At times messy and wrought with inspiration, and at other times solemn and clean, Palettes is an exploration of sound and color through new-music and the ever changing landscape of the chamber setting.
released October 7, 2019
available on Bandcamp
Taylor Joshua Rankin
spark
Not quite a school, a movement, or a tribe, the composers that decided to form the Common Sense Composers’ Collective in 1993 nevertheless share musical and professional dreams and values that find strength together.
Now in its third decade, the Collective has still got it going on, as its fifth album, Spark, amply demonstrates. It is kindled by the Oakland-based Friction Quartet, that spent many months breathing their own unique fire into the works. The group performs them here as if they had known these compositions all their lives. Their ability to move from virtuosic precision to a deep, timeless, almost telepathic mode of communication is remarkable.
release May 10, 2019
available on Innova
Innova
palettes
Palettes is an album of original compositions from composer Taylor Joshua Rankin. The debut album is a blend of mixed-genre, contemporary-classical music with post-minimalist influences, ranging from acoustic to electro-acoustic works for chamber groups.
These pieces were written specifically for this record; an amalgamation of all things I am passionate about and seek to experience on a daily basis. At times messy and wrought with inspiration, and at other times solemn and clean, Palettes is an exploration of sound and color through new-music and the ever changing landscape of the chamber setting.
released October 7, 2019
available on Bandcamp
Taylor Joshua Rankin
spark
Not quite a school, a movement, or a tribe, the composers that decided to form the Common Sense Composers’ Collective in 1993 nevertheless share musical and professional dreams and values that find strength together.
Now in its third decade, the Collective has still got it going on, as its fifth album, Spark, amply demonstrates. It is kindled by the Oakland-based Friction Quartet, that spent many months breathing their own unique fire into the works. The group performs them here as if they had known these compositions all their lives. Their ability to move from virtuosic precision to a deep, timeless, almost telepathic mode of communication is remarkable.
release May 10, 2019
available on Innova
Innova
resolve
A defining feature of classical music is the conversation between tension and release, struggle and triumph, conflict and resolution. Music students and chamber music fans alike will be familiar with the concept of music seeking to resolve. Resolution is necessary for musical elements such as tension and release. Likewise, resolution is vital as a personal skill for any composer or musician on their journey in music.
In our lives, the quality of resolve allows us to transcend the barrier between the insurmountable and what is possible with hope, determination, and perseverance. Our debut album, resolve, is inspired by these themes of musical and personal resolve.
released May 23, 2018
available on Bandcamp
Friction Quartet
The War Below
After more than 6 years, Rome prize-winning composer and percussionist Andy Akiho releases his sophomore album on National Sawdust Tracks.
'Prospects' begins with a thrilling exchange between a driving low-register viola motif and the deadening silence of the Palo Alto cathedral where it was recorded. One by one, the ensemble throws splashes of color onto the motif until a dense polyrhythmic texture is formed and drives the piece through. Pianist Jenny Q Chai delivers a skillful performance with poster tack and a coin lodged into the harp of the piano, creating muted knocks, zips, and unexpected tone changes throughout the work.
released January 5, 2018
available on Bandcamp
National Sawdust
String Quartet Smackdown
String Quartet Smackdown is a bracketed NCAA basketball tournament style competition using original compositions submitted by composers and musicians worldwide. It’s like March Madness for the ears! This album is comprised of the final sixteen quartets of 2015.
released January 25, 2017
available on Bandcamp
Golden Hornet
the first and the last
The inaugural release in a new series of split 10” vinyl EPs pairing works by two emerging San Francisco Bay Area composers performed by local ensembles featuring the music of Danny Clay and Joseph M. Colombo.
released October 14, 2016
available now from Pinna Records
Symmetry Series
petrolio
Petrolio is a full length album of music by composer Luciano Chessa featuring Friction Quartet performing his Quartetto No. 2 "Delle Bomboniere", Con Passi Scelti Dall'Autobiografia di Sesto Rocchi and Tre Danze Da Salotto.
released March 11, 2016
available from SMP
Chamber Music of
David Conte
Friction Quartet performs David Conte's String Quartet No. 2 on his full length chamber music album.
released June 1, 2015
available on iTunes