Selma Savolainen - Horror Vacui (2023)

Horror Vacui is her debut record and features some of the most sought-after musicians on the Finnish jazz scene – Max Zenger on clarinets, Tomi Nikku on trumpet, Toomas Keski-Säntti on piano, Eero Tikkanen on double bass and Okko Saastamoinen on drums.

Savolainen is an alumnus of the Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead program and the Banff International Workshop for Jazz and Creative Music. She has studied at the Sibelius Academy and the Conservatory of Paris. In 2022 Savolainen was awarded with the Rising Talent Prize by the Pori Jazz Festival. Horror Vacui is a set of songs composed and arranged specifically for this sextet, exploring the fear of emptiness, renunciation and sudden discoveries. Savolainen says, “by creating space for every musician’s voice we hope to create a place where solitude does not exist.”

Album opener ‘Intense Ways To Recover’ has shifting sections and energy changes which represent a wandering mind and features a standout performance from clarinettist Zenger. The next track, ‘Fourteen’ is “probably the most abstract text that I've written,” says Savolainen. “It's about counting different things. I wanted to have a dream like space where it doesn't really make any sense but it’s sort of a personal way of soothing yourself. There is a repetitive thing going on. It's very simplistic.” ‘So Loud’ is about the noise inside your head and features an amazing solo from trumpeter Nikku. ‘Subjects I’ provides another change of pace and is a four-phrase composition which is very open and free.

Billy Strayhorn’s ‘A Flower Is A Lovesome Thing’ is an important inclusion for Savolainen who feels a deep connection with the Late composer, “he was born on the same day as I was, and it feels very special to me. I think this is one of the greatest standards there is,” she says. The ethereal ‘Haunted’ is about plotting an escape from an anxious situation but realizing that is impossible. The second cover on the album is 'Speak Low' from Kurt Weill's repertoire. “I really wanted to explore an older jazz expression,” explains Savolainen. “I felt it was important to have an atmosphere of playfulness at some point."'Days Of Suffering', co-composed with Keski-Säntti, is a tune about being really tired and feeling worn out and the album comes to a close with ‘Fear Of The Empty’, which holds juxtaposing elements such as a trumpet line inspired by Bix Beiderbecke. Savolainen explains, “I wanted to have echoes coming from somewhere completely different. I think that's a way to express playfulness. You have these moments of surprise and I feel like that's very important when it comes to music. To have that surprise element there.”

Horror Vacui is a strong debut entry from an exciting musician whose compositional approach is captivating and underpinned by impressive technique. An accomplished vocalist and cerebral composer, Savolainen’s star is most definitely on the rise.

Selma Savolainen - voice
Tomi Nikki - trumpet, flugelhorn
Maz Zenger - woodwinds
Toomas Keski - Säntti - piano
Eero Tikkanen - double bass
Okko Saastamoinen - drums