Songs with Strings merges indie artists with classical sounds
Vincent Ott reimagines songs by indie artists such as Flayana Boss, Jamaica Moana and India Carney.
By ADEN MAX JUAREZ
Composer Vincent Ott and musician Andrew Loper, known on-stage as Rubber, first met three years ago at an open mic night at Micky’s WeHo, when both had just moved to Los Angeles. A year and a half later, Ott had an idea for a string quartet pop-up show.
The concept was realized in November 2024, when a string quartet took over one night of the Two Rooms concert series to perform arrangements of several artists’ songs. A crowd of over 70 gathered for the show; from there, Songs with Strings, a continuing concert series, was born.
“It just snowballed,” Loper said. “There was just such a powerful response to it.”
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Songs with Strings pairs rising indie artists with wholesoul, a Los Angeles-based string quartet, to play the artists’ original arrangements. The concert series has performed around Los Angeles since its founding, and its social media presence and following has grown rapidly. Songs with Strings currently has over 45,000 followers across Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
USC alum and cellist Ismael Guerrero has performed with Songs with Strings multiple times through his connections with wholesoul, whose founding members are friends of Guerrero’s. He said the project opens doors to collaboration and live performances.
For Guerrero, combining the classical sounds of a string quartet with the talent of contemporary performers is a “wonderful” experience.
“I don’t think our instruments should be limited by what the standards of classical music [are], but rather, the more we can expand the possibilities of it, the better,” Guerrero said. “Strings, in general, they have a lot to add to songs. I think most of the songs that get to have strings immediately, I think, become more musically fulfilling.”
While the platform was slow to grow at first, after continuing to organize shows and collaborations with notable artists like Flayana Boss and Jamaica Moana, Songs with Strings gained significant attention, which has also meant more eyes on the artists it collaborates with.
Shai, a pop singer-songwriter, performed with Songs with Strings on Sunday. The pieces she performed were arranged for strings by composer Vincent Ott, who helped create the concert series with Andrew “Rubber” Loper. (Aden Max Juarez / Daily Trojan)
Pop singer-songwriter Shai flew in from the East Coast to perform with Song with Strings on Sunday. She recorded “Feeling For You,” which is set to be released in late May or early June. With Songs with Strings’ growing social media presence, Shai said the platform can help uplift rising artists.
“It’s important to open the door, even for someone who’s kind of unassuming and new,” Shai said. “It’s wonderful that they’re putting this platform and giving power to the artists.”
Shai said she grew up playing the violin and loved the arrangement on Sunday because it felt like it was a blend of her two worlds.
“It was great to see the song reimagined in this way, and it almost gave it a second life to have it rearranged in that version,” Shai said.
After a performance with an artist is confirmed, Ott creates each string arrangement for their songs. He said he tries to reimagine the song when creating the new piece.
“I’m not doing these arrangements as trying to accurately represent what the track is like, but on strings, necessarily, I’m trying to reimagine and reharmonize, and create a whole different version,” Ott said.
Ott said certain eras of classical music, like the Baroque and late-Romantic eras, pair well with modern sounds, like R&B and rap.
“There’s so many possibilities to pair different types of classical music with different types of contemporary music in a really successful way,” Ott said.
Loper hopes Songs with Strings inspires people to discover indie artists through social media and trust that if they listen to an artist who is featured, they will like their music.
“Someone’s branding and their funny little edits that they’re making don’t necessarily paint the full picture of an artist and who they are as a performer,” Loper said. “Sometimes [you] just gotta go out and discover them yourself.”
Ott said he hopes Songs with Strings shows will be free in the future and that the group can perform shows with bigger ensembles. He is also planning more shows in Los Angeles and in Europe.
“The bigger plans in general are to just keep growing the show, keep growing the audience, finding ways to make the ticket prices very accessible,” Ott said.
Already, some of Songs with Strings’ performances come at no cost to audience members. On Sunday, the group performed with India Carney, a singer-songwriter and background vocalist for artists such as Olivia Rodrigo and Katy Perry, on a sidewalk outside of Community Goods in West Hollywood.
Carney recorded a rendition of her new single “Mirror” with Songs with Strings. She said she felt the care Ott put into the arrangement when she listened to the first demo.
“What makes this experience special is that a custom string arrangement was done for your original song,” Carney said. “Hearing my song in a different setting always gives a new perspective, which is what music is all about.”
Carney said she thought the street noise would hinder the sound quality, but she could actually hear better than expected, which was a welcome surprise.
“As someone who graduated with a degree in opera, I love moments where I can exist with that music in a different setting,” she said. “Existing with a string quartet on the sidewalk of a very busy street, it’s something right up my alley.”
