(CD)

The Watercolors is a unique jazz-combo based in Helsinki, Finland. The ensemble sketches ”jazz-aquarelles” by mixing colors from European classical tradition with contemporary jazz. 

The original sound of the group is shaped by combining two of the more rare instruments in jazz, oboe and cor anglais played by Janne Saarinen, together with Ilkka Uksila on vibraphone, Joonas Tuuri on double bass and Joonas Leppänen on drums.

The Watercolors’s philosophy is to create untraveled paths in jazz via a tonal palette of less common instruments, rather than through wild harmonies and rhythmic ideas. The Oboe’s melancholic sound perfectly embodies the nordic mindset and its pristine nature, which is endless source of inspiration for Saarinen’s compositions. That’s why Janne Saarinen took up the challenge to explore the difficult woodwind, aiming to translate jazz-language to the instrument.

Janne Saarinen - oboe and cor anglais, Ilkka Uksila - vibraphone, Joonas Tuuri - bass, Joonas Leppänen - drums