Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Juhani Aaltonen & Iro Haarla: Kirkastus
Juhani Aaltonen & Iro Haarla: Kirkastus
ByBut the saxophonist is only half the duo. The pianist side of the team, Iro Haarla, wrote all the tunes; and Kirkastusas democratic as the the instrumental inputs areseems like Iro Harla's disc.
Haarla began her career in earnest in the late 70s accompanying Finnish drummer Edward Vesala. It was a musical and marital relationship that lasted until the drummer's death in 1999. She has since brought her own artistry to the forefront, with two marvelous recordings on ECM Records, Northbound (2006) and Vespers (2011), as well as contributing as a sideperson on TUM Records sets by Aaltonen and bassist Ulf Krokfors, in addition to her leader recording on TUM, Kolibri (2014).
On Kirkastus, Haarla's classical-informed piano melds to perfection with Aaltonen's saxophone. The pianist often employs a spare approach in her ensemble work. In the duet she uses a lusher, angelic sound, on piano as well a harp. Haarla's compositions draw inspiration from her spirituality, specifically Biblical Psalms. The music sounds like an existential search for truth and beauty, not unlike the Coltrane's quest that veered in a more serene direction when Alice Coltrane entered his life and music.
The set's title tune, "a celebration of the glorification of a human beingthe victory of the light of love," is perhaps the "freest" segment of the set with Aaltonen's most powerful playing. "Farewell to Valomaki" is the saddest tune on record since Keith Jarrett laid down a versionin duet with bassist Charlie Hadenof Gordon Jenkins' "Goodbye." And "Lead Me to the Rock," inspired by Psalm 61, is tranquility, achieved via the artists' consummate skills combined with the spiritual underpinnings that build a stand-on-the-rock foundation for this gorgeous music.
Track Listing
Evening Prayer; Out of the Depths; Still Waters; Kirkastus; Arie--A Song for Lost Love; Nightjar; Farewell to Valomaki; Long Sole Sound;Hear Me Cry;Lead Me to the Rock.
Personnel
Juhani Aaltonen: tenor saxophone (1, 3, 4 ,6, 7, 9, 10), flute (2), alto flute (5), bass flute (8); Iro Haarla: piano (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10), harp (3, 6, 8), chen (6), percussion (2).
Album information
Title: Kirkastus | Year Released: 2015 | Record Label: TUM Records