FYC: The Westerlies
“FIGHT ON”
2026 GRAMMY-NOMINATED:
“Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella”
Andy Clausen, Addison Maye-Saxon, Riley Mulherkar & Chloe Rowlands, Arrangers (The Westerlies)
“Fight On” from The Westerlies’ June 2025 album Paradise
“Fight On” reimagines the 1859 Shape Note hymn through the kaleidoscope lens of The Westerlies. The opening track from their 2025 album “Paradise” begins with a memorable show of technical bravado and a swarm of insistent, bubbling sixteenth notes that buoy up this rugged rendition of the little-heard but still thunderous 19th-century Sacred Harp song.
A History of Shape Note Singing with The Westerlies:
As the source melody is passed around the quartet, the trumpet ostinato stubbornly drives forward, its motif uncannily mirroring the jab and pluck of a banjo.
The ensemble weaves through shifting meters and tight hockets with the precision of a string quartet and audacity of a rock band, building intensity until the final melody soars above, channeling the timeless spirit of the hymn.
STREAM THE FULL ALBUM
The Westerlies, “an arty quartet…mixing ideas from jazz, new classical, and Appalachian folk” (The New York Times), hold a singular space in modern music. From Carnegie Hall to Coachella, this self-described “accidental brass quartet” has upended presumptions of the brass tradition to create music that is “folk-like and composerly, lovely and intellectually rigorous” (NPR Music).
Comprising Riley Mulherkar and Chloe Rowlands on trumpet and Andy Clausen and Addison Maye-Saxon on trombone, the ensemble has relentlessly composed, arranged, adapted, recorded, and toured over the past fifteen years with the precision of a string quartet, the audacity of a rock band, and the charm of a family sing-along.
Across ten critically acclaimed studio albums, The Westerlies have earned “a unique reputation for exploring the emotional textures of American music” (DownBeat), championing living composers and collaborators including Caroline Shaw, Nico Muhly, Conrad Tao, Wayne Horvitz, Robin Holcomb, and Theo Bleckmann.
The Westerlies' singular sound and virtuosic skill have also made them in-demand collaborators, playing in studio and live alongside artists from Aaron Dessner to Haley Heynderickx, and on GRAMMY-nominated releases from both Fleet Foxes and Aoife O’Donovan.
PRESS FOR "PARADISE" (JUNE 2025):
“Paradise, the exceptional new recording by The Westerlies brass quartet, comes at a perfect time in history. The music — sublime, precise and deeply spiritual — serves as a balm for the soul during a worrisome era...They have reshaped, recast and elevated this choral music — named for The Sacred Harp, a shape-note songbook from 1844 — into something that’s beautifully soothing and timeless...This is music of great simplicity, thoughtfulness and beauty. It is not easy-listening; it’s amazing listening.” ★★★★★, Editors Pick
– Frank Alkyer, Downbeat Magazine
“For the brass quartet The Westerlies, “beyond category” rings true thanks to their unique blend of jazz, classical, new improvised music, chamber music and Americana.”
– Lee Mergner, JazzTimes Magazine
“a record that feels both historical, yet strikingly modern; full of muscular technicality and also the type of full-throated melodies that could easily get a crowd singing along instantly.”
– Ammar Kalia, Downbeat Magazine
"the sharpest improv-literate American brass quartet in the game.”
– Nate Chinen, The Gig
“Carefully crafted to both exalt the origins of the tradition and to reimagine it's no-frills melodic brilliance in a contemporary context….a well-loved quilt, homespun and unadorned in its presentation, leaving plenty of room for the characteristics of each player to shine.”
– Sam Feehan, Earshot Jazz Magazine
