Arcanum is the first album together by this trumpet, saxophone, double bass, drums setting of Arve Henriksen, Trygve Seim – whose tune ‘Nokitpyrt’ opens the album – Anders Jormin and Markku Ounaskari.
They play improvisations, draw on a Finnish hymnnal tradition (eg ‘Armon Lapset’ ‘Children of Mercy’), Japanese, Norwegian sounds and a version of Ornette Coleman’s ‘What Reason Could I Give.’
The Ornettian universe is fundamental. Some tracks work on a more episodic level and the role of drums is really only for abstract expressionist colour. It’s not a groove or playing time kind of record at all. Spang a lang lovers – nothing to see here.
For those still with us most of the tracks are brief: the more substantial ones in terms of length are ‘Folkesong,’ ‘Trofast,’ ‘Lost in Vanløse,’ ‘Koto,’ ‘Pharoa’ and ‘Elegy’ – the album begins with a braying quality thrown up by the letting go freedom of the Ornettian horn lines on the Triptykon inspired ‘Nokitpyrt’.
Then Arcanum becomes more episodic before the mood changes yet again thanks to stunning solo lines from bass icon Jormin – known for his work with Charles Lloyd and Tomasz Stanko – on ‘Armon Lapset.’
To gain an idea of the remarkable transformation of the piece listen to a traditional choral version above and then the new Arcanum treatment.
Seim’s ‘Trofast’ has a naive quality to it and the way Seim and trumpeter Henriksen combine is akin to Ornette and Don Cherry together on early period Atlantic records if you think not even that far outside the box and make a few allowances for context, period and a lesser bluesy feel.
Jormin tends to steal the show on some of the album’s more majestic passages – another is found on ‘Lost in Vanløse’ – the name in the title is a district of Copenhagen.
Arcanum was also recorded in the Danish capital in a top studio there in 2023. Sonics as you’d expect on an ECM album are excellent and the artwork is a treat.
‘Old Dreams’ is probably one of the most avant-garde freedom loving statements and works well given the cry, almost a primal scream, of a solo trumpet line at the beginning.
Jormin tune ‘Koto’ appeared in a different treatment on his 1990 Dragon label album release Silvae (which Henriksen also appeared on).
‘Pharao’ is one of the best tracks – it reminds me of Jormin’s work with Tomasz Stanko, Bobo Stenson and the late Tony Oxley, eg their for the ages late-1990s classic together, Leosia. Best? Because it’s open and more involved as a group. Its fragmentary nature contributes to the freedom and you get a sense of experimentation in real time without it being performative. Other highlights on a stimulating album include Jormin tune ‘Elegy’ written in sadness for the darkness that has befallen Ukraine following iniquitous invasion.
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