Just So delivers four engaging string quartets from Canadian composer Cassandra Miller, performed by the ever-adventurous Quatuor Bozzini. Miller’s approach, marked by bold quotation, direct lyricism, and inventive repetition, allows each piece to breathe with immediacy and sincerity. The title track opens the album with gentle humor - a brief, buoyant play on gesture and motif, sketching out the record’s ethos without pretension. Throughout, Miller’s music draws on folk textures, swirling patterns, and melodic snippets, letting tradition and imagination intertwine in subtle cycles.
The set includes the miraculously beautiful “About Bach,” where a solitary violin evokes both the “bright loneliness” of solo Bach repertoire and wandering lines that sound at once ancient and fresh. “Warblework” unfolds in four meditative variations, layering birdlike figures, sudden scurries, and glowing harmonies. Each movement is realized with poise and translucent ensemble chemistry, Quatuor Bozzini savoring every detail without excess.
Miller’s compositional voice is kind-hearted and brave - unafraid to be simple yet never simplistic, adept at transforming familiar material through repetition, variation, and subtle shifts in color. Her works create spaces for both joy and nostalgia, their clarity reminiscent of Feldman’s best chamber pieces but saturated with contemporary brightness. The quartet’s playing, ranging from spirited to introspective, anchors Miller’s vision, balancing sophistication and touch throughout.
Just So marks Miller’s ability to open new musical spaces - a record mind-expanding in its imaginative use of instrumental color and unforced drama. Quatuor Bozzini’s collaboration brings warmth and precision, ensuring that each piece glows with luminous intent. Miller’s quartet suite stands as a testament to her compelling fusion of folk insight and modernist craft, making the familiar strange, and the strange remarkably inviting.
