Rüüt hail from Estonia and offer an incredible take on Estonian ethnic music, modernized for the 21st Century, taking in elements of jazz. The band describes their music this way:
“The band is characterized by mystical atmosphere, intricate harmonic, melodic and rhythmic combinations, precision and a common feel. This is what Rüüt’s music is like.”
Thanks to our dear friends at Nordic Notes for hipping us to this release a while ago!
Lauri-Dag Tüür appeared on my previous blog in 2020 with what I believe was his debut album, and he’s gotten better since. This album clocks in at a bit over 40 minutes, and it’s one of the better examples of Kosmische Musik I’ve heard in some time done by a modern composer. The album is spacious and roomy, and takes a leisurely pace winding and unwinding while it travels around the universe, reminding me of artists like the late Klaus Schulze, Robert Rich, and in parts, fellow Estonian Sven Grünberg and his project, Mess.
Though the soundtrack to Sander Joon’s animated film Sierra won’t be officially available until August of 2022, Misha Panfilov has graciously shared several very mellow, almost vibraphone-inflected tracks he used to design the cartoon’s soundscape.
I have a deep love of Baltic culture which kind of makes sense since my maternal line has roots in what is today Kaliningrad, Russia, but was, for centuries, German and Baltic (Old Prussian) soil. The music in the region possesses a magical quality to it, quite unlike any other region in Europe.
ARTE.tv produced a nice documentary featuring Andris Nelsons, Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla, Paavo Järvi, Gidon Kremer and Arvo Pärt talking about what makes the region of the music so special.
Special thanks to Chris Morley, whose wisdom and taste in music mirrors and surpasses my own. I am indebted to him for this find.