Lars F: Heureka

“Heureka,” recorded in 1970, is the first of this album’s two extended orchestral works by the late trumpeter Lars Färnlöf who was fifty–one years old when he passed away in February 1994. Completing the album is the six–movement “Svit (Suite) Caçhasa,” recorded in 1973 with the Swedish Radio Jazz Group. The three–part “Heureka,” on which Färnlöf’s quartet is accompanied by the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, is symphonic in character with a subtle Jazz overlay provided by the quartet to complement even–tempered improvisations by Färnlöf, pianist Bobo Stenson and bassist Red Mitchell. “Caçhasa” is a somewhat Jazzier work that is nonetheless tied together by classical elements of its own — but with no strings attached. The SR Jazz Group is amplified on the suite by pianist Staffan Abeleen’s quintet, on which Färnlöf plays trumpet and flugel. “Caçhasa” is singularly impressive, showing that while Färnlöf was quite comfortable writing for a larger group, he kept the musical landscape reasonably uncluttered and gave the ensemble and its component parts ample room to swing. Besides the members of the quintet (Abeleen, Färnlöf, Mitchell, tenor Björn Netz, drummer Fredrik Norén), the soloists on “Caçhasa” include some of Sweden’s best — pianist Bengt Hallberg, guitarist Rune Gustafsson, saxophonist / flautist Lennart Åberg, drummer Egil Johansen, trombonist Lars Olofsson, baritone Erik Nilsson and others. This is chamber music with a well–defined Jazz bloodline, perceptively written and handsomely performed.

Contact:STIM (Swedish Music Information Centre), Box 27327, SE–102 54 Stockholm, Sweden; www.mic.stim.se