Verneri Pohjola & UMO Jazz Orchestra / Kerkko Koskinen - Agatha (SVART RECORDS 2018)

Kerkko Koskinen’s musical visions have always been ambitious. When he put together what was to become the most popular rock/pop band in Finland in the 1990s, Ultra Bra, the instrumentation of a standard band was just not enough. In addition to four vocalists, the 13-member band included a horn section, two percussionists, and a large-scale string assembly, used in the band’s recordings. Striving to create a “big” sound has always been present in Koskinen’s production, and finally, with Agatha, he has found the orchestra to match his musical vision: a world-class big band, Umo Jazz Orchestra, and a world-class soloist, trumpetist Verneri Pohjola.

Koskinen and Pohjola’s musician personas complement each other in a way that inevitably brings to mind one of the most legendary composer-soloist partnerships in the history of jazz: that of Gil Evans and Miles Davis. Just like Davis created a humane, accessible instrumental contact surface to Evans’ architectural arrangements, Koskinen’s rich and full orchestration is balanced by Pohjola’s trumpetism, full of contrast and intimacy. To mention just a few, Pale Horse, And Then There Was One, and Cats And Pigeons are brilliant examples of Koskinen and Pohjola’s fruitful cooperation.

Crooked Room

Helsinki-Vantaa

Pale Horse

Passenger to Copenhagen

Sparkling Arsenic

Cats and Pigeons

Elephants Can

And Then There Was One

The Pointing Finger

Riemukaare

Alto Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone, Flute, Flute [Alto], Piccolo Flute, Clarinet – Pentti Lahti, Pertti Päivinen

Alto Saxophone, Clarinet – Jouni Järvelä

Alto Saxophone, Flute, Piccolo Flute, Clarinet – Teemu Salminen

Bass – Ville Huolman

Bass Trombone – Mikael Långbacka

Composed By, Arranged By – Kerkko Koskinen

Conductor – Kari Heinilä

Drums – Markus Ketola

Edited By, Supervised By – Tuomas Kallio

French Horn – Esa Tapani, Joonas Seppelin, Tuomo Eerikäinen

Liner Notes – Olli Virtaperko

Mastered By – Svante Forsbäck

Oboe, English Horn – Keijo Silventoinen

Percussion – Antti Lehtinen

Performer, Orchestra – UMO Jazz Orchestra

Photography By – Terhi Kokkonen

Piano – Tuomo Prättälä

Producer – Antti Lehtinen, Kerkko Koskinen

Recorded By, Mixed By – Miikka Huttunen

Sleeve – Antti Eerikäinen

Soloist, Trumpet – Verneri Pohjola

Tenor Saxophone, Flute – Olli Ojajärvi

Timpani, Glockenspiel, Bass Drum [Gran Cassa], Cymbal, Percussion – Tuomo Lassila

Translated By – Nana Gudmundsson

Trombone [1st] – Antti Rissanen (tracks: 1,3,5,7,8), Jari Hongisto (tracks: 2,4,6,9,10)

Trombone [2nd] – Mikko Mustonen

Trombone [3rd], Tuba – Pekka Laukkanen

Trumpet [2nd] – Timo Paasonen

Trumpet [3rd] – Mikko Pettinen

Trumpet [4th] – Tero Saarti

Trumpet [Lead] – Teemu Mattsson

Eero Koivistoinen Quartet - Illusion (SVART RECORDS 2017)

Illusion is the second recording of Eero Koivistoinen Quartet for Svart Records after the quartet’s debut Hati Hati. The ensemble has worked together for five years, performing at festivals and clubs in Finland and the USA.

Playing together for 5 years has made the ensemble tight and the interplay is happening. All members of the quartet are recording artists and playing busy in many other combinations as well. Drummer Jussi Lehtonen is making his Svart Records debut at the same time with his Quintet recording Move On. Pianist Alexi Tuomarila released recently his second trio album Kingdom on Edition Records. Bass player Jori Huhtala just finished recording with his new trio Jori Huhtala 3.

The title tune Illusion is a new composition in a lyrical atmosphere. Big 5 is named after 5 African game animals, the time signature is also 5/4. Eero is playing soprano sax. What animal is this? Maybe a leopard. Catalonia is a melody from a suite El Viejo Almacen for a big band. First in rubato and then modal vamping in 6/4

Straight Up is one of the most popular tunes that Eero ever wrote. There is also a big band version of it on Arctic Blues / Umo Jazz Orchestra / Svart album. Is Blue In Green composed by Miles Davis or Bill Evans? My vote is Evans. This is a soprano sax & piano duet from an earlier Hati Hati session. Hallanvaara’s melodic motives can be found in a song Harmaaparta, Hallanvaara. It is based on a poem by famous Hannu Salama. The composition has a dark and free feeling starting with the famous big gong of the studio.

This recording session was the last one made in the famous M1 Studio of YLE (Finnish Broadcasting Company). The title Goodbye M1 is dedicated to the studio where I myself and so many others have had a number sessions and memorable moments during the 35 years that this sidewise largest studio in Finland was still active.

There is a palpable sense of honesty, thought, experience and commitment that is apparent from the first note.

Dave Liebman

Eero Koivistoinen has been one of the most constantly creative saxophonists, composers, and band leaders I’ve known through the years.. He is always developing and documenting music that is full of his beautiful honest expression… I’m a big fan…

Joe Lovano

Eero Koivistoinen is truly a legend in Finnish jazz or as the current terminology would have it,

a genuine ‘local hero’. He really deserves much greater recognition across Europe…

Stuart Nicholson

Illusion 6.04

Big Five 5.02

Catalonia 7.32

Straight Up 5.31

Blue In Green 3.51

Hallanvaara 5.48

Goodbye M1 6.09

Eero Koivistoinen tenor and soprano sax

Alexi Tuomarila piano

Jori Huhtala bass

Jussi Lehtonen drums

Eero Koivistoinen & UMO Jazz Orchestra - Arctic Blues (SVART RECORDS 2016)

The saxophonist and composer Eero Koivistoinen, who turned 70 this winter, is going through an exceptionally creative phase in his career. Koivistoinen celebrated his birthday together with the jazz orchestra UMO (Uuden Musiikin Orkesteri, New Music Orchestra), which he took part in founding in the mid-seventies. The orchestra played four concert hall dates with Koivistoinen at the helm both as conductor and solo saxophonist, and decided to join forces in the studio as well.

Arctic Blues was recorded in Helsinki this winter and mixed and mastered in Power Sound Studio, Amsterdam. The album is a showcase of Koivistoinen’s talents as composer, arranger, saxophonist as well as conductor, conducting one of the most remarkable European big bands of today. Arctic Blues is a behemoth of an album, spread over two CDs and three LPs, being the first Finnish jazz record of such magnitude.

After founding UMO 40 years ago together with Esko Linnavalli and Heikki Sarmanto, Koivistoinen has often worked with the orchestra, and also acted as its director for a few years in the 1990s. Arctic Blues consists of mostly new material, recorded in the winter of 2016, but also features three tracks from a live session at UMO Concert House in 2005. The album has big band renditions of Koivistoinen’s past work as well as material written for this record in mind.

“In the 1970s, I studied composition and arranging at the Berklee College of Music, Boston, under the guidance of Herb Pomeroy. It waas an important phase in my musical development. UMO was my second musical college. The orchestra made it possible for me to become acquainted with the best works for big band, guided by the masters themselves. UMO had guest musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie, Thad Jones, Gil Evans, Joe Henderson”, recalls Koivistoinen and adds, “Since we played a lot of these current numbers live with UMO at the shows this winter, the studio session was an easy and inspirational one.”

Svart Records are proud to release Arctic Blues on double CD, triple LP and digital formats on November 25th. Svart also have an ongoing reissue program of Koivistoinen’s past work, with LP reissues of classics such as Wahoo and 3rd Version.