Biography

Visa Oscar’s second album Looking Back, Reaching Forward features several well-known Finnish and international jazz musicians. Strong original compositions, skillful improvisation, and fascinating synthesizer sounds keep the listener under its spell from start to finish.

Looking Back, Reaching Forward is the second album by Finnish jazz musician and composer Visa Oscar. The album is the pinnacle of a ten-year doctoral degree in art at the University of the Arts Sibelius Academy jazz department. At the same time, it is the first release of the Sibelius Academy jazz department's newly established Sibis Jazz record label and the Sibis Jazz Doc publication series of doctoral researchers.
 

- The songs on the album are influenced by the styles of Chick Corea, Joe Zawinul, George Duke, Jan Hammer, and Michael Brecker, says Visa Oscar.

Oscar has extensively studied their improvisation during the past ten years and drew inspiration for his music. The result is a rich album that takes influences from the past and merges them with contemporary sounds and moods. While all tracks are Oscar’s originals, he distributed a stake to each player and soloist to give them a share of the track’s copyright revenue.

Some of the top names of the Finnish jazz scene form the line-up: e.g. saxophonist Ville Vannemaa, bassist Antti Ahoniemi, and drummer Jussi Lehtonen. In addition, the album features an impressive list of international and Finnish guest musicians: drummers Dave Weckl and Rafael Barata, bassists Carlitos Del Puerto and André Vasconcellos, singer Eeppi Ursin, percussionist Ricardo Padilla, and saxophonist Joonatan Rautio. Weckl and Del Puerto had long tenures with recently deceased legendary keyboardist & bandleader Chick Corea.

-The album's opening track, Armando's Flamenco is a tribute to Chick Corea's flamenco-influenced fusion jazz. It was interesting to hear drummer Dave Weckl and bassist Carlitos Del Puerto play my music. I also wanted to study the impact of their presence on my playing, says Visa Oscar.

The album's recordings were made in 2020 and 2021 in various locations. Most is recorded in Finland, but some tracks have been recorded in the United States and Brazil. One can hear intense, world-class playing and improvisation on the album. Different aesthetic approaches give each synthesizer solo a vital characteristic.

Visa Oscar's (formerly Visa Oscar Group) debut album Fusion Treatment was released in 2015. The second album is a natural continuum to it. Looking Back, Reaching Forward is a concept album where Finnish musicians' high-quality fusion jazz joins the grand narrative of the American jazz tradition.

Tracklist

1. Armando’s Flamenco
2. Asymmetric Lovesong
3. Bossamba
4. Nocturnal Confessions
5. Another Waltz
6. Chromatic Rhythm
7. The Door Of No Return