Bryce Dessner & The Kronos Quartet – “Aheym”

Bryce Dessner, one of the two twin brothers in the National, is the band member who studied music composition at Yale before going on to dour indie rock stardom. A few years ago, he arranged a new piece called “Aheym” for the Kronos Quartet, the long-running modern-classical institution, when they were getting ready for a show at Brooklyn’s Prospect Park bandshell. Since then, the group has performed the composition many times, and now they’re getting ready to release a full album together. The title track absolutely nothing like the National — or like indie rock in general — but it’s a chance to hear where Dessner’s passions push him, even beyond what he does in his relatively adventurous side project Clogs. Watch Matthew Ritchie’s video for the piece.