“The extraordinary beauty of the nature is one of my sources of inspiration”, says Iro Haarla. “We should look at life as if we’re moving towards a clearing horizon each day of our lives.” Finnish multi-instrumentalist Haarla’s nuanced compositional work for European jazz label ECM Records has earned her an international reputation. Similarly, New Zealand-born double bassist and composer Jonathan Zwartz is celebrated in his adopted home of Australia for his work with groups like This World, and as an award-winning solo artist.
The two musicians will appear together for the first time at SIMA’s Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival in 2022. Zwartz has been writing Suite Suomi, a work to be performed as a band with Haarla playing classical harp accompanied by Zwartz’s double bass, and a group of decorated players.
Iro Haarla. Image Supplied
The daughter of a prominent Finnish opera singer, Haarla was born in 1956 and her early influences come from classical and opera. Attending the Sibelius Academy, she learned to play piano and compose, and was taught to improvise by Heikki Sarmanto, who introduced her to Thelonious Monk, Bill...
Comments
Log in to join the conversation.