Risteski’s musical path began on clarinet in Macedonia, where he completed his studies in classical music before moving into jazz and saxophone. His path to Graz was equally formative: after a spontaneous period playing regularly in Germany, he eventually landed in Austria to study Saxophone at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz (KUG) and settled into the city’s jazz scene, where he developed the sound heard on Waters Dance. The group’s debut album was recorded at ArteSuono Studio in Italy with the master sound engineer Stefano Amerio.

The music moves through themes of identity, change and motion. Shaped as a single, cohesive statement, the album traces an ongoing search for connection between musical traditions, lived experience and contemporary expression.

Although the Quartet had already been playing together regularly, the album’s material was only presented to the band shortly before the recording. Risteski first formed the line-up with the session in mind, then chose to spend around 9–10 months playing live with the musicians before entering the studio, building real chemistry through club dates and festival appearances. The final charts were delivered just ten days before the recording, so much of the music was encountered in real time, helping to preserve a freshness and spontaneity. The result is a record that combines the familiarity of an established band with the freshness of new music being tested in real time.

Risteski chose the Quartet for the specific voices of the players as much as for the format itself. He first encountered pianist Marko Churnchetz on a recording session in Ljubljana, after having already heard him live in Graz, and was immediately drawn to his musical sensitivity and creative instinct. Bassist Hrvoje Kralj is a longtime friend and former roommate who supported Risteski in his early years in Graz, while drummer Chris Smith, the only American in the group and respected figure on the scene, brought a distinctive energy and openness to the group. 

What binds the Quartet together is not only musical compatibility, but a genuine personal connection and a shared way of thinking. Risteski wanted musicians he could work with over time, rather than assembling a one-off recording line-up, and he gives the players space to shape the music in their own way. That balance of direction and freedom is central to the album’s sound, with each musician contributing to a quartet identity that feels both deliberate and alive.

As a composer, Risteski works from ideas rather than formulas, often starting with rhythm, a melodic fragment or a harmonic shape that develops over time. His writing draws on classical material, Macedonian odd meters and emotional memory, but never in a way that feels calculated or academic. Across the album, familiar elements are placed into new contexts, creating music that is personal, fluid and unmistakably his own.