Multi-faceted lushly evocative chamber-jazz here from Russia born Norway based pianist and keyboardist Olga Konkova. The Pianist's Garden was recorded in Norway in late-2023. Konkova is joined by Mark Heinecke on woodwinds and piano, a US musician long since Norway residing; and Frederik Villmow on drums and percussion. Villmow is a Germany born also Norway based player.

Konkova says: ''My biggest inspiration for this recording has been my discovering of a variety of woodwind sounds, of which I hadn’t previously been consciously aware''. In this regard there's use of an ocarina on the title track and later an ''old German wooden flute'' on 'Contented Today'. Elsewhere piccolo, alto flute and bass clarinet play their parts, often semi-mystically wherein lies a lot of the album's appeal.

'Alaska' finds Konkova and Heinecke playing four hands together on one of the best tracks. 'Lunar Ice' woozily begun on Fender Rhodes electric piano was inspired by Jimmy Webb's 'The Moon is a Harsh Mistress,' a ballad that was covered by both Joe Cocker and by Webb's great interpreter Glen Campbell so magisterially in 1974 found on the album Reunion: The Songs of Jimmy Webb.

By radical contrast 'The Demise of Pluto' is a spontaneous composition improvisation performed by all three musicians - more of this would have been very welcome. Something of an audiophile calibre listen given how interesting the mix is in places and how well the flute sounds are captured, if new to Konkova we recommend the pianist's Candid period from the late-1990s/early-2000s as stimulating supplementary listening. Olga Konkova, photo: Losen