Chelsea Suite

for Oboe, Trumpet, String Quartet, and Piano

I. Evening Study (Prelude)
II. Subway Jam (Fugue)
III. Speakeasy (Rondo)

Aaron Copland’s Quiet City is an enchanting piece of music. Its meditative nature has this entrancing quality that conjures up a romantic and wistful image of a New York City long before my own time. However, having spent some time living in New York, I must say that “meditative” or “wistful” are not words I would readily use to describe the place. From my tiny apartment in Chelsea, I witnessed all manner of disruptive events, from giant trucks rumbling down my narrow street to shouting matches between strangers. Although it plays host to a plethora of wonderful things, New York is crowded, dirty, and above all noisy, certainly not the quiet haven that Copland’s music suggests. It seems that the image that he had in mind is either no longer or simply inaccurate.

Chelsea Suite is a triptych of images from my experiences in New York, from studying scores above a busy street to stuffing myself into crowded subways to nights out in old speakeasys with friends. It is a mixture of disparate sounds, conveying a city with a disparate range of experiences and sights. This work is meant as an observation of my surroundings, extrospective rather than introspective.

Chelsea Suite was completed in November of 2025. It was commissioned by Emma Breen, who premiered it alongside Thacher Schreiber on May 31 in Los Angeles, California.