Biography

Sphere is the 3rd album from the brilliant Finnish pianist, Alexi Tuomarila and his trio with bassist Mats Eilertsen and drummer Olavi Louhivuori. They are joined by guest trumpeter Verneri Pohjola on Sphere, a simply brilliant album that brings together powerfully melodic, driving, rhythmical soloing, Finnish melancholy to create some of the finest musicianship to emerge from any currant Nordic ensemble.

The almost eerily intuitive playing of the trio stems from Alexi, Olavi and Mats’ long relationship – not just in this trio but in a host of other musical situations. The addition of the superb young Finnish trumpeter Verneri Pohjola to the mix (surely one of the brightest talents in the jazz world today) enriches the trio sound and brings out new elements in the trio’s compositions.

Sphere is simply quite brilliant, bringing together strong melodic, driving, rhythmical soloing, Finnish melancholia and some of the finest musicianship to emerge from any Nordic small ensemble. It has a wonderful freedom within the structure of its memorable compositions. The disc has that ‘classic album’ feel: it will be listened to again and again, studied by musicians and admired by many. This is music that captivates, moving all with its strong melodies and driving improvisations.

BBC Music Magazine gave Sphere five stars review and named it as the jazz album of the month.

Tracklist

1. Shapeshifter
2. Jord
3. Origins
4. Sirius
5. Boekloev
6. Unfold
7. Krakow
8. Celeste