Chicago violist Doyle Armbrust graduated with honors from Northwestern University and went on to study with Donald McInnes at the University of Southern California where he earned a Masters Degree in Viola Performance. Doyle is a founding member of the Spektral Quartet and principal violist of the Firebird Chamber Orchestra in Miami, FL.
After returning to Chicago having completed a three-year fellowship in the New World Symphony as rotating principal violist under Michael Tilson Thomas, Doyle began an active freelance career including commercial engagements as sideman for Eddie Vedder, The Beach Boys, Richard Marx, Lupe Fiasco, and Peter Gabriel. Positions not involving pyrotechnics include sectional coach of the DePaul and Roosevelt University orchestras, as well as adjunct viola instructor at the University of Chicago, where the Spektral Quartet is ensemble-in-residence.
A rabid advocate for new music, Doyle is a core member of Ensemble Dal Niente as well as a contributing writer for Time Out Chicago, Beats Music, and the Chicago Tribune.
Doyle Armbrust appears in the following:
New Morse Code's 'Simplicity Itself' Glows with Intimacy and Investigation
Tuesday, October 17, 2017
The latest from cello-percussion duo New Morse Code is a spectacular display of intimacy and discipline, between composer and performer, and between the players themselves.
Poetry and Technique on Exquisite Display in Mariel Roberts' 'Cartography'
Monday, May 22, 2017
On cellist Mariel Roberts' latest album, "Cartography," the technique is superlative, but the album is also a feat of inspired and divergent programming. Listen all week.
Ted Hearne and The Crossing's 'Sound From the Bench'
Monday, April 17, 2017
Composer Ted Hearne’s arms must be exhausted, carrying around that giant mirror that he so effectively holds up to modern life. Listen to his ‘Sound From the Bench’ all this week.
Opera Company Trades Limo Seats for Earbuds with 'Hopscotch' Disc
Monday, January 16, 2017
How can a site-specific opera – one in which audiences were shuttled around Los Angeles in limos, side-by side with performers – translate to the static medium of a recording?
Yarn/Wire's 'Currents Vol. 4'
Monday, December 26, 2016
Comprised of two percussionists and two keyboardists, Yarn/Wire is releasing a "Currents" album each year to give voice to the theatrical and the exploratory. Listen to volume 4 today.
Carolina Eyck's Theremin Mines New Expressive Possibilities
Monday, October 31, 2016
Carolina Eyck’s "Fantasias for Theremin and String Quartet" embraces the instrument’s eerie ability to embody the human voice and its seemingly interstellar range. Listen all week.
Listen: Christopher Tignor Mesmerizes with 'Along a Vanishing Plane'
Monday, October 24, 2016
Sensual, often melancholy, and expansive, Christopher Tignor's Along a Vanishing Plane is record for drawing the drapes and tucking into a pillowy sofa. Listen all week.
Tenor Sax Quartet Battle Trance Returns with Scorching 'Blade of Love'
Monday, August 22, 2016
Tenor sax quartet Battle Trance's latest album, 'Blade of Love,' ferries the listener forward, allowing not a moment of hesitation in which to consider skipping ahead. Listen now.
Lewis Pesacov, The Industry and wild Up Offer Doomsday Delirium
Monday, July 18, 2016
Los Angeles-based chamber opera rebels from The Industry pair up with new-music daredevils in wild Up for Lewis Pesacov’s portentous "The Edge of Forever." Stream the album all week.
Cello Ensemble's Collective Virtuosity Shines in 'shadow, echo, memory'
Monday, July 11, 2016
'shadow, echo, memory' moves the cello choir into new territory. Stream the Northwestern University Cello Ensemble's latest — with tracks by Kernis, Ligeti and Fauré — all week.
Mivos Quartet's Full Course 'Garden of Diverging Paths'
Monday, June 13, 2016
Music eats literature and literature dines on music, and Mivos Quartet’s "Garden of Diverging Paths" is an album of beautiful cannibalism. Stream the full album all this week.
Cellist Michael Nicolas's Debut 'Transitions' Slides, Pummels and Seduces
Monday, May 16, 2016
"Transitions" — the debut album by cellist Michael Nicolas (Brooklyn Rider, International Contemporary Ensemble) — makes a strong case for the interdependence of cello and electronics.
Listen: Clint Mansell's Gritty Score to 'Requiem for a Dream' Issued on Vinyl
Monday, April 11, 2016
In celebration of Record Store Day 2016, Nonesuch has released Clint Mansell's indelible soundtrack to Darren Aronofsky's 'Requiem for a Dream' on deliciously chunky 180g vinyl.
Skylark Vocal Ensemble Delivers Engrossing Meditation on Death
Monday, March 14, 2016
The nectarous new release "Crossing Over," from Atlanta and Boston-based a cappella vocal ensemble Skylark, lives at the intersection of existence and the void. Stream it all this week.
Third Coast Percussion Offers Empathetic 'Steve Reich'
Monday, February 08, 2016
Third Coast Percussion’s ability to gently manipulate time, as heard on their new Steve Reich album, translates to a listening experience that is both buoyant and penetrating.
Jóhann Jóhannsson's Relentless, Ritualistic 'Sicario' Soundtrack
Monday, December 14, 2015
Relying heavily, and successfully, on low brass, strings and heavy-boned percussion, "Sicario" establishes its bleak worldview early on and never lets go of the listener’s collar.
Dawn of Midi's Qasim Naqvi Offers a Sci-Fi Companion with 'Preamble'
Monday, November 16, 2015
"Preamble," the debut solo release from Dawn of Midi drummer Qasim Naqvi is a companion to a sci-fi film installation, but works powerfully as a stand-alone piece of art.
Violist Melia Watras Spans Earthy and Luxurious Sounds in 'Ispirare'
Monday, October 26, 2015
If ass-kicking in classical music could be likened to that of late-80’s-to-early-90’s action heroes, Melia Watras is a Jean-Claude Van Damme of the viola. Stream "Ispirare" now.
Jane Antonia Cornish's 'Continuum' Unfolds With Wistful, Melancholic Beauty
Monday, September 14, 2015
English composer Jane Antonia Cornish makes a strong impression with "Continuum," a collection of wistful chamber music played by the ensemble Decoda.
Iceland's Anna Thorvaldsdottir Imagines Fantastical Landscapes
Monday, August 24, 2015
It is simply too simplistic to say that Anna Thorvaldsdottir is "inspired by nature,” as has become the shorthand in describing composers hailing from Iceland.
