Musical Elaborations

It is the perfect sequel to "Reflections and Odysseys", their highly acclaimed debut that spawned an equally acclaimed series of live performances. The trio have taken the dynamics, textures, moods, and perfect blend of subtle detailing and big sonic gestures to new levels, and have picked up new elements of 60s psychedelia and punk energy along the way. If you ever wondered what would happen if a Krzysztof Komeda score for a Polanski movie collided with Fugazi, look no further; if you need to know what Chopin writing doom metal might sound like, you might just find the answer you seek. The prog and fusion elements you already know and expect are still here, but with different colours and markings. If "Reflections and Odysseys" was a first expedition into earth orbit, "Spacesailors" goes far beyond. This just might be their "moon landing" album.

After Mette Henriette’s critically acclaimed, self-titled first recording comes Drifting – and album pervaded by trio conversations of idiosyncratic and original expression. With Johan Lindvall returning on piano, new addition Judith Hamann on cello and herself on saxophone, Mette’s chamber musical elaborations prove of a concentrated and exploratory quality, marked by subtle yet intense interaction. Motifs and recurring patterns crystallize and reveal a concise, intricate narrative. The saxophonist-composer explains how “this album is in movement. It’s on its way somewhere and has its own pace – its creative agency is fundamentally different from what I’ve done previously.” Recorded in Oslo, completed in Studios La Buissonne and produced by Manfred Eicher, Drifting presents the trio’s deep investigations into hushed textures and rich tones with precision and clarity.

Generally speaking, a souvenir is a token of remembrance, a symbol of a past that is meaningful to its creator, dedicatees, addressees, and the whole community for which it is created. A souvenir may quote, recall, evoke, imply, et al., and the realization of these potentialities is always strictly connected with the what, the how, and the why of its existence, structure, and creative/manufacturing process. As such, along the centuries and throughout the cultures of the world, the souvenir has been actualized, experienced, shared, and interpreted as a personal keepsake, a moral memento, a commercial reminder, a socio-political narrative, and so on.

Grainger’s mastery of choral textures shines out of this wide-ranging collection of folk-song arrangements, each highly individual and memorable. Plus his friend Grieg’s finely scored religious settings. Superior performances by Stephen Layton and Polyphony.