Poiesis Quartet
Sarah Ying Ma, violin | Max Ball, violin
Jasper de Boor, viola | Drew Dansby, cello
“Poiesis created waves of excitement in Banff with performances that included a scintillating Brahms String Quartet No. 3 in B flat major in the competition’s Romantic repertoire round.”
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In 2025, the Poiesis Quartet was awarded the Grand Prize at the Banff International String Quartet Competition, one of the most prestigious competitions in the world. Their artistry, precision, and fresh perspective secured their place as an ensemble to watch on the international stage.
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Their debut album as we are on Bright Shiny Things, featuring mezzo-soprano Nancy Maultsby, was praised for its “bottomless depth.” Beyond recordings, Poiesis has engaged audiences worldwide through residencies in Uruguay, Italy, Canada, and France, affirming their international reach and artistic versatility.
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Poiesis is committed to expanding the string quartet repertoire with vibrant new works by emerging composers. They have premiered music by Brian Raphael Nabors, Kitty Brazelton, and Cara Haxo, and recently debuted Kevin Lau’s String Quartet No. 7 "Surfacing". Their Oberlin Commission Project will present five new works by LGBTQ+ composers of color in 2026.
Lauded for their “palpable chemistry and remarkable warmth” (San Francisco Classical Voice), the Poiesis Quartet is the First Prize and Commission Prize winners of the 2025 Banff International String Quartet Competition. In 2023, they were named the Grand Prize and Lift Every Voice Prize winners of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, as well as Gold Medal and BIPOC Prize winners at the 2023 St. Paul String Quartet Competition. In May 2024, Poiesis joined the Concert Artists Guild roster for North American management as winners of the Louis and Susan Meisel Competition.
Derived from ancient Greek (ποιεῖν), the word Poiesis means “to make”; specifically, to create something that has never existed before. With a focus on expanding the string quartet repertoire with vibrant new works by emerging composers, the Poiesis Quartet infuses each performance with unique moments of synchronicity and verve. Their 2024 debut album as we are on the Bright Shiny Things label, which features world premiere recordings with mezzo-soprano Nancy Maultsby, was lauded for the quartet’s “bottomless depth” (Cleveland Classical). Having had presented several world premieres of works by composers including Brian Raphael Nabors, Kitty Brazelton, and Cara Haxo, their commission of String Quartet No. 7 “Surfacing” by Chinese-Canadian composer Kevin Lau received its world premiere at the Chautauqua Institution in 2025. Furthermore, the Oberlin Commission Project (TOCP), an exciting new endeavor spearheaded by Poiesis, presents the world premieres of five newly commissioned works by LGBTQ+ composers of color from Oberlin Conservatory in March 2026.
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Poiesis is honored to be selected as the 2025-26 Ernst Stiefl Quartet-in-Residence at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, and as the 2025 St. Lawrence Emerging String Quartet in Residence at Stanford University. Poiesis has previously acted as ensemble-in-residence of concertnova, a Cincinnati-based collective which presents multi-sensorial and interdisciplinary concert experiences. Recent and upcoming engagements include the San Antonio Chamber Music Society, Newport Classical, Chamber Music Raleigh, Noe Music, Guarneri Hall, and the Austin Chamber Music Center, amongst others. Highlights of the 2025-26 season include performances of ‘Absolute Jest’ with the Dayton Philharmonic in Dayton, OH and the Oberlin Orchestra in Oberlin, OH. Poiesis has completed multiple international residencies in Punta del Diablo and Punta del Este, Uruguay; the Emilia Romagna Festival in Italy; the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance in Nova Scotia, CAN; the University of Victoria in British Columbia, CAN; and the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence in France. Additionally, the Poiesis was selected as the only North American ensemble to compete in the 2025 Banff International String Quartet Competition in Alberta, CAN.
The Poiesis Quartet is currently the Graduate Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) studying under the Ariel Quartet. As graduates of Oberlin College & Conservatory, they were previously mentored by Sibbi Bernhardsson of the Pacifica Quartet and members of the Verona Quartet. As a multi-faceted ensemble, in addition to their performance degrees from Oberlin, members of the quartet also individually received formal education in disciplines such as chemistry, comparative American studies, feminist studies, baroque, and jazz. When not playing chamber music, Poiesis loves to learn new languages, share ice cream cakes, and take long walks on the beach.
Members of the Poiesis Quartet play on instruments and bows generously loaned by Jonathan Solars Fine Violins.
September 2025 – Please do not edit without permission.
Videos
Programs & Repertoire
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PROGRAM - REGENERATION
Sky Macklay "Many Many Cadences"
Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate "Pisachi (Reveal)"
Kevin Lau String Quartet No. 7 "Surfacing"
*****
Leilehua Lanzillotti "ahupua'a"
Sergei Prokofiev String Quartet No. 2 in F Major* Commissioned by Poiesis Quartet
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PROGRAM I
Sergei Prokofiev: String Quartet No. 1 in B minor, Op. 50
Jeff Scott: New Work, Title TBD
*****
Sky Macklay: Many Many Cadences
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 16 in F Major, Op. 135PROGRAM II
Sky Macklay: Many Many Cadences
Astor Piazzolla (arr. Poiesis Quartet): The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
I. Verano Porteño (1965)
II. Invierno Porteño (1969)
III. Primavera Porteña (1969)
IV. Otoño Porteño (1969)
*****
Kevin Lau: String Quartet No. 7, “Surfacing”
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No. 16 in F Major, Op. 135PROGRAM III - A BETTER WORLD
Michi Wiancko: To Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores
Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson: String Quartet No. 1, “Calvary”
*****
Jeff Scott: New Work, Title TBD
Kevin Lau: String Quartet No. 7, “Surfacing”“An artist’s duty, as far as I’m concerned, is to reflect the times.” These famous words of renowned African-American musician-activist Nina Simone continue to ring with truth today. As humans, we are constantly investigating and responding to the conditions of society, and this program explores our inherently political lives with power, intimacy, and sincerity.
The first half of the program invites hope: Michi Wiancko, who reflects on the climate disasters that have devastated vulnerable populations, describes her work as “a celebration, a call to action and meditation on our collective humanity”. Paired with Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson’s inimitable ‘Calvary’ quartet, we are inspired by collective perseverance through struggle. Based on the African-American spiritual of the same title, this work tells the story of Jesus’ crucifixion, signifying the resistance and deliverance of Black Americans in the past, present, and future.
The second half of the program features two of our most meaningful commissions: Jeff Scott, commissioned through the Caramoor Center, highlights the well-documented history of LGBTQ+ artist-activists in the U.S. Following this, Lau’s Quartet No. 7 – which was inspired by a familial trauma, when the composer’s newborn son was diagnosed with a rare liver disease – navigates the parallel processes of recovery and growth, surfacing from the depths of strife and hardship with a renewed exuberance. In tandem, these pieces bind our past and present experiences together, honoring our community’s history while uplifting the next generation.
Ultimately, this program is an artistic lesson in resilience and strength, providing us with an opportunity to mourn, celebrate, and grow together. A better world is possible, and it starts here.
Projects
