About Us
Poiesis Quartet
Lauded as an “ensemble to watch” (Hyde Park Herald), the Poiesis Quartet is the Grand Prize and Lift Every Voice Prize winner of the 2023 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. Formed just eight months prior, Poiesis also received the Gold Medal and BIPOC Prize 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 & Susan Meisel Competition. In 2025, the Poiesis was named one of only ten competitors in the prestigious Banff International String Quartet Competition, and the only group accepted from the United States.
Since their win at Fischoff, Poiesis has performed concerts on major series including the San Antonio Chamber Music Society, Chautauqua Institution, and the Austin Chamber Music Center, amongst others. In 2024, they recorded Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson’s “Calvary” Quartet at Guarneri Hall in Chicago. Poiesis has also performed internationally in Punta del Diablo and Punta del Este, Uruguay, and traveled to Italy in summer 2024 for a residency at the Emilia Romagna Festival. In 2025, Poiesis completed residencies in Nova Scotia, CAN at the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance and in France at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. Highlights of the 2025-26 season include appearances with Chamber Music Raleigh and Noe Music in San Francisco, as well as performances of John Adams' Absolute Jest with the Dayton Philharmonic in Dayton, OH.
As an ensemble passionate about new music, the October 2024 release of their debut album as we are on the Bright Shiny Things label featured world premiere recordings of works by Clint Needham and Richard Stout in collaboration with mezzo-soprano Nancy Maultsby. For the 2024-25 season, Poiesis served as the ensemble-in-residence of concertnova, a Cincinnati-based collective which presents multi-sensorial and interdisciplinary concert experiences. Poiesis is passionate about expanding the string quartet repertoire and has presented world premieres of works by Brian Raphael Nabors, Kitty Brazelton, and Cara Haxo. Their commission of String Quartet No. 7 by Chinese-Canadian composer Kevin Lau will receive its world premiere at the Chautauqua Institution in July 2025. Additionally, in 2026, they are excited to present a concert featuring the world premieres of newly commissioned works by five young LGBTQ+ Composers of Color at Oberlin Conservatory.
Comprised of violinists Sarah Ma (22) and Max Ball (23), cellist Drew Dansby (24), and violist Jasper de Boor (24), Poiesis 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 have previously been 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, Drew also received a B.A. in Chemistry; Sarah holds two minors in Comparative American Studies and Gender, Sexuality, & Feminist Studies; Jasper graduated with a double major in viola and violin performance, as well as a minor in baroque violin; and Max pursued a minor in jazz studies. When not playing chamber music, Poiesis loves to learn new languages on Duolingo, share delicious ice cream cakes, and take long walks on the beach.
The name Poiesis is derived from the ancient Greek word ποιεῖν, which means “to make,” specifically, to create something that has not existed before. Poiesis seeks to program music of all styles and genres with an emphasis on platforming works by emerging and underrepresented composers, creating unique moments of synchronicity and verve in each performance.
Sarah Ying Ma, violin
Sarah Ying Ma (they/she) is pursuing an A.D. at the University of Cincinnati's CCM where she studies with Kristin Lee and is mentored in chamber music by the Ariel Quartet. Sarah was named a 2024 Performance Today Young Artist in Residence with host Fred Childs, and is the recent 2nd Prizewinner of the 2023 Dallas International Violin Competition: "Her impassioned account was gripping from start to finish. She commanded that rarest of effects, pianissimos at the threshold of audibility that still radiated intensity" (The Dallas Morning News). In 2024, Sarah was accepted as a semifinalist in both the solo and ensemble divisions of the Concert Artists Guild Louis & Susan Meisel Competition, and later advanced to the finals with Poiesis. As a soloist, Sarah has performed internationally with the Dallas Chamber Symphony, Ensemble 212, the Accademia D’Archi Arrigoni, and many more. Sarah was featured in Show 393 on NPR’s “From the Top'' and was a winner of the 2021 National YoungArts Competition. They have attended Heifetz International Music Institute and Kneisel Hall, and was the Dorothy Richard Starling fellow at Aspen Music Festival as a student of Robert Lipsett, Donald Weilerstein, and Paul Kantor. Sarah was a laureate of the 2019 Cooper International Competition sponsored by Florian Leonhard Fine Violins and the Anthony Quinn Foundation. After transferring from undergraduate studies at The Juilliard School with Donald Weilerstein and Li Lin & Masao Kawasaki in the Pre-College Division, Sarah now holds a B.M. in Violin Performance from Oberlin Conservatory, where they studied with Sibbi Bernhardsson.
Max Ball, violin
Max Ball (they/he) is a current A.D. student at the University of Cincinnati's CCM, studying with Kristin Lee and quartet with the Ariel Quartet. He has a particular passion for chamber music, putting together a number of recitals, and attending summer programs such as the BUTI String Quartet Intensive, Encore Chamber Music Institute, and Madeline Island Fellowship Program. Alongside classical music, he is also pursuing a minor in jazz studies, studying under Gerald Cannon and Jay Ashby, and joining several ensembles at Oberlin. A particular highlight is the PI (performance and improvisation) ensemble, in which players across all departments of the conservatory join forces with guest artists from around the world, playing many varied styles of music. Max holds a B.M. in Violin Performance with a minor in Jazz Studies from Oberlin Conservatory as a student of Sibbi Bernhardsson.
Jasper de Boor, viola
Jasper de Boor (any pronouns) is a recent graduate of Oberlin Conservatory where they double majored in violin and viola with David Bowlin and Kirsten Docter. Currently, they study viola and chamber music at the University of Cincinnati's CCM with Ayane Kozasa and the Ariel Quartet. Aside from quartet, they love to sight read music, play piano and Baroque violin, and sleep.
Drew Dansby, cello
Drew Dansby (he/him) is a recent double-degree graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory, with degrees in cello performance under Darrett Adkins and chemistry with minors in Comparative American Studies and sociology. Drew joined the cello section of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra full-time beginning in the 2023-24 season, becoming the youngest member of the orchestra at 22. He has served as an acting cellist in the Charlotte Symphony, associate principal cellist of the New York String Orchestra, and principal cellist of the Verbier Festival Orchestra. Originally from Charlotte, NC, Drew made his solo debut with the Charlotte Symphony at age 15. Drew is also a founding member of the Charlotte Piano Trio, which has performed 14 concerts over 5 years across North Carolina, and was the founder and director of the 2022 Myers Park Summer Series. Drew has been recognized as a National YoungArts winner and gold medalist in the Cleveland Cello Society competition. Drew was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA for three summers, including as a violinist in 2018 and as principal cellist in 2019, and he was the first member in the history of the orchestra to be accepted on two instruments. As a winner of Oberlin's concerto competition, he performed David Baker's Concerto for Cello and Jazz Band with the Oberlin Jazz Ensemble in April 2024.