Five Bromances is a suite for viola and piano written as a tribute to my longtime friend Daniel McCarthy. Dan and I have known one another since high school, and later lived together in New York City. That period of our friendship provided the personal material for this piece: remembered conversations, contrasting temperaments, and the mixture of seriousness and absurdity that often defines a close friendship.

The suite unfolds in five movements—I. Grave; II. Andante incisivo; III. Moderato; IV. Sentimentale; and V. Statico—each approaching the relationship from a different angle. Some movements are direct and sharply drawn, while others are more reflective, affectionate, or deliberately understated. Throughout, I was interested in the viola’s particular ability to sound intimate, conversational, and vulnerable, qualities that made it especially suited to the character of the work.

The piece was originally titled Five Romances, but the name changed after someone suggested Five Bromances. The revised title felt less formal and more accurate to the spirit of the music and the friendship behind it.

—SC