The Ensemble

A Novel

By: Aja Gabel

Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman

A sweeping debut novel about four young musicians - a story of art, ambition, and love.

Brit is the second violinist, a beautiful and quiet orphan; the viola is Henry, a prodigy who's always had it easy; the cellist is Daniel, the oldest, the angry skeptic who sleeps around; and on first violin is Jana, their flinty, resilient leader. Together, they are the Van Ness String Quartet.

In The Ensemble, each character takes the spotlight and picks up the melody, from the group's youthful rocky start through to middle age, through both devastating failures and wild success. As they navigate heartbreak and marriage, triumph and loss, betrayal and enduring loyalty, they are always tied together - by career, by necessity, by the intensity of their art, by the secrets they carry together, and by choosing each other over and over again.

The Ensemble is a heart-skipping portrait of artistic ambition, friendship, and the tenderness of youth. With heart, clarity, and poignant understanding, Aja Gabel examines the relationships between trust, love, and the magical, messy world of making music.

©2018 Aja Gabel (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"In Ms. Gabel’s terrifically entertaining debut, the frictions of long-term friendships are woven into the “webbed, collaborative endeavor” of the quartet. Their music doesn’t transcend the mess of living; it testifies to it." (The Wall Street Journal)

"Pitch-perfect." (People)

"Reminded me of Zadie Smith's Swing Time... The language that Gabel uses to describe both the pressures of prestige chamber orchestras and, simply, what it is to be a human in the world, is a work of art in and of itself. I found myself highlighting dozens of passages, marveling at just how impossibly relatable these people are... [I]t's the perfect form of escapism for me." (Entertainment Weekly)

Unexpectedly wonderful

I nearly passed on this book due to decidedly mixed reviews but I’m so glad I gave it a chance. I found the story compelling and cared about the characters, wondering what would come of the quartet and each of its members. The narration was excellent. It was easy to distinguish each of the characters and through those four voices, I heard and felt their joy, wonder, frustration, pain and angst. I will remember this book for quite a while, I think.

Musicians will relate

This book gives a glimpse into the interpersonal relationships between members of a string quartet. Musicians of all sorts will relate to the dynamics of performers. Others who are curious about musicians may find this book interesting. The reader is excellent overall.

A great glimpse into the world of classical musicians

I enjoyed the storyline, the characters and the intricate way each of them develops throughout the book, in a similar way that a work of classical music does. Having played violin most of my life, I loved the details about the various classical works described, as well as the challenges and triumphs of performing in general. It is well written - rich prosaic detail. I wish I had read the actual book instead of listening. I’m not a fan of this particular narrator, and I think I will try to avoid her audible books in the future. It might be just me because she has narrated many previous books and has received good reviews. This is the second book I’ve listened to that she has narrated, and I had the same reaction both times.

Beautiful Use Of Language

The tone and use of language in The Ensemble was more beautiful and interesting than the story line. Listening to the words was like listening to a quartet.

Score!!!

Intelligent, funny and evocative. Beautiful language telling the tale. Luxurious exploration into character' pysches. Great production and narrator. Enjoy!

Took forever to get through

Finally finished The Ensemble. I started reading this book over a year ago for a book club I joined. The author’s talent is clear, but there is so much internal dialogue that it’s a bit maddening. It’s not a Jonathan Franzen internal dialogue, it’s different and great in some spaces, but it was dizzying. The ending was great, but it took a lot of time and effort to get to that point.

Classically Slow

Even though I'm not a classical music fan I figured a musical group is a musical group is a .... I think, though, one really needs to be into this scene to truly get the storyline of THE ENSEMBLE. Difficult to follow for me. If I have to work at remembering the characters and their individual plots, it's not worth my time. It's a bit more difficult with the audio version to follow along, but this book put me to sleep. 6/27/18

A wonderful journey for musicians

As a violinist, living in San Francisco, I fell right instep with this novel. The author guides you through the life, woes and successes of the Van Ness String Quartet with expert knowledge of string technique and the real world of musicians. Good drama and romance- I enjoyed it!

I trudged through this book

The story line was good- I relate to the musicians and that part of the story. However, as another reviewer put it, it became tedious; there would be interactions between characters, then what became mind-numbingly long explanations of how each character related to the others-individually- and why. It was almost as if the author felt that every relationship must be explained because otherwise, the reader just wouldn’t get it.

uninteresting and repetitive

couldn't finish it, maybe it was the delivery but I was completely turned off by all the characters and the description of their lives. I felt like the same sentiments, literally some of the same sentences just kept being used over and over. I just stopped and returned it after 4 chapters.