Alina Bzhezhinska, Tony Kofi & Tulshi - Whispers of Rain (Live) (Tru Thoughts) [Jazz / Ambient]
- The Slow Music Movement
- 2 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Originally from Lviv in Ukraine, Alina Bzhezhinska has made quite the impact since blessing England with her presence and harp playing a decade ago. Deeply inspired by the work of the Coltranes - particularly Alice Coltrane's harp-driven, spiritual jazz mission, she's a keen collaborator, integrating her instrument into all sorts of contemporary, as well as classical music productions and live performances, not to mention teaching the instrument at top institutions, like Goldsmith's college.
Originally from Nottingham, Tony Kofi should need no introduction to jazz lovers, especially in the UK. Coming up, like so many leading UK jazz lights, through the Jazz Warriors, he's played with pretty much everyone over the years, but as this new project with Bzhezhinska shows, he's still searching and not sitting on his well-earned laurels.
Jonathan Rogers, aka producer, engineer and studio manager Tulshi - after paying his dues as a DJ and producer 'up north', is now based in the less climatically challenged island of Ibiza, where he lends sonic guidance to a wide range of projects, not just the deeper dance music strains of his formative years.
Now, I'm not usually a fan of live albums, BUT, I'm making a serious exception for this live recording - captured I believe, at different locations, of Bzhezhinska and Tulshi's Whispers of Rain album. It's simply beautiful, and now their electroacoustic fusion project has been further elevated by the light touch saxophone and flute playing of Tony Kofi, who seamlessly slips into the project, taking it to a whole other dimension.
Much to Tulshi's credit, gone are his more forceful electronic structures that cropped up amongst the more ambient endeavours of the original album; this time round he's content to sit back and focus on atmospheric embellishment. He might also be responsible for the live-sounding percussive elements in some tracks - although considering the amount of chimes, rattles, shakes and hitting involved in some tracks I'd be surprised if someone else wasn't on stage, but in the absence of conclusive credits I'll leave that to your imagination, or not, if you're just enjoying the music.
The album opens with the weightless, cosmic, ambient drift of "Child's Play", the sweetness not entirely innocent - as some dub techno pads from the studio production pulse in the background, but certainly pure, spiritual and serene - what an opener. Things then get busy with, "Nomad's Nocturne", the hand-played percussion giving the searching harp the propulsion it needs to ask all the right questions, whilst Kofi sits back and soaks it all up, finally lending a calming flute near the end of the quest.
The title track is next and it's Kofi's turn to shine; his gentle saxophone gliding serenely on Bzhezhinska and Tulshi's warm ambient thermals. The darker cloud of "Warm Days, Cold Nights" then floats into the summer skies: a slightly off-kilter string loop nagging the ambient harp dreams like a distant alarm clock before eventually runnign out of power, leaving the leading lady to her deeply soulful harp introspection, egged on by some rolling drums and minimal keys. "Starling" then injects a moment of utter calm into the listening space; the perfect gateway for the spiritual, ambient jazz masterclass' of "Across the Sea" and "Journey Home" which round off this wonderful live collection with their weightless, possibly wellness-imbuing sounds.
Stream a couple of tracks of this remarkable recording on your service of choice, but head to the Bandcamp underground for the full show.
Playlist Companion
Find the trio in the Slow Ambient Playlist.