[NOTE: All proceeds from sales of this music are donated to charities and music foundations.] REVIEWS "Polson's cohorts appear in varying combinations of duo, trio, and quartet ranging from boppish acoustic arrangements to more fusion-inspired electronic explorations.... 'Northern Lights' is a series of unexpected and creatively assembled compositions that evoke a wide palette of emotion, a feast for the ears." - Andrea Canter, jazz critic and contributing editor, JAZZ POLICE "Polson's playing is becoming more and more intuitive and diverse with each new recording. (The free piece towards the end is really quite remarkable.) There is a funkiness now, which is new and incredibly groove-based; there is also a playfulness, which is of course reminiscent of Monk. It has been my honor to work with such a talented student, and there is exquisite communication within this talented group of musicians." - Laura Caviani, Twin Cities jazz pianist and educator "Polson's genius shines through as always." - Dee Henry Williams, KFAI-FM "Sweet stuff!" - James Moore, KRUU-FM ________________________________________________ CREDITS Recording & mixing: Jim Reynolds, Troy Flemming (on track 9 only) Editing: Frank Sullivan Mastering: Doug Wild Production: Thor Polson With the exception of track 9, all tracks were recorded at Custom Recording Studios in Golden Valley, Minnesota under the knowing ear of Jim Reynolds, to whom I am immensely grateful. Thanks too to Ted Godbout for the deft handling of his conducting responsibilities. Finally, special thanks and a very deep bow to John Jensen, Laura Caviani, and Alexander Tutunov. As I think about this project, what strikes me the most is the fact that each of these recordings completely corresponds to the original conception, but since I know these musicians so well, that hardly surprises me.  I truly believe that love always bears offspring of some kind, and this album is dedicated to everyone involved in its birth and to the many other lights in my musical life during my stay in the Twin Cities.  As stated elsewhere, all of these outstanding musicians on this recording are my friends, my brothers, and my family, and our home is the music that we make together.  Whatever I do musically from here on out is just an ongoing tribute to them all. ________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION (Track 1) “Theme from ‘Remembering Judy Schramm’” (Tom Allen): Thor Polson, piano. (I perform on all tracks except track 9.) This elegant theme is taken from a requiem written by composer/guitarist Tom Allen, now living in Fairfield, Iowa.  To me, it expresses a fully realized and perfectly stated expression of beauty and hope, like a sudden ray of sunlight on a cloudy day. JAZZ SUITE (Tracks 2-8) 2-6. "Four Seasons in St. Paul" 2. “Summer [for Summer LaRose]” (Thor Polson): See my note on track 6 below.  Tracks 2-6 were at least partly inspired by Rick Sowash’s “Four Seasons in Bellville”, another tribute to the Midwest.  3. “Fall” (Tom Allen & Thor Polson): Keith Nance, tenor saxophone; Darrell Pridgen, electric bass; Joe Dowdall, drums.  Tom Allen wrote the original melody, which I used as the basis for the harmony, rhythm, and arrangement.  This piece is meant to have a very hard urban edge to it, and it conjures up a strong picture in my mind: I remember many frigid nights spent driving through the streets of St. Paul in late November and thinking about the onset of yet another Minnesota winter.  It ends with the first snowstorm of the season (cp. the thunderstorm in “Spring” below), a perfect vehicle for Joe’s masterful drumwork.  This and the following piece were written as a tribute to the other founding members of Urban Cadence. 4. “Winter” (Thor Polson & Jeff Keys): Jeff Keys, trumpet and flügelhorn.  I wrote the harmony, rhythm, and arrangement, and Jeff added the melody.  For those who have spent many winters in Minnesota, this piece needs no further description.    5. “Spring [for Spring LaRose]” (Thor Polson): Eric Solberg, acoustic bass; Joe Dowdall, drums.  This piece begins with an approaching storm, passes through various shades of light and darkness with the gentle sound of tires hissing on wet pavement in the background, and ends abruptly with a sudden cloudburst followed by a rainbow and a final clap of thunder in the distance. 6. “Summer" (reprise): Darrell Pridgen, electric bass; Joe Dowdall, drums.  Cruisin’ with the top down...  7. “Pontifications [for Harry Pontiff]” (Thor Polson): Harry Pontiff, acoustic bass; Steve Watne, harmonica.  A Monkish blues jam. 8. “Chuckles” (Eric Solberg): Eric Solberg, acoustic bass; Joe Dowdall, drums, cowbell, and aluminum baseball bat.  Eric wrote this boppish tune for his cat, Charles (“Chuckles”) Mingus. INTERMEZZO (Track 9) “I’m Everything I Never Thought I’d Be” (Chris & Thor Polson): Troy Flemming, guitar, voice, and arrangement.  My brother Chris handed me a set of lyrics several years ago and asked me to turn them into a country song.  Is this a country song? FREE SUITE (Track 10) “The Kensington Runestone (for Scott Richardson)” (Thor Polson): James Prindiville, flute and bass clarinet; Ted Godbout, synthesizer; Joe Dowdall, percussion.  The Kensington Runestone is a 200-pound slab of greywacke covered in runes on its face and side which, if genuine, would suggest that Scandinavian explorers reached the middle of North America in the 14th century. It was found in 1898 in the largely rural township of Solem, Douglas County, Minnesota, and was named after the nearest settlement, Kensington.  Swedish-American farmer Olof Öhman said that he had found the stone late in 1898 while clearing his land of trees and stumps before plowing, having recently taken over an 80-acre parcel that had for years been left unallocated. The stone was said to be near the crest of a small knoll rising above the wetlands, lying face down and tangled in the root system of a stunted poplar tree, estimated to be from less than 10 to about 40 years old. The artifact is about 30 x 16 x 6 inches in size and weighs about 200 pounds.   Translation: "Eight Götalanders and twenty-two Northmen on [this?] acquisition journey from Vinland far to the west. We had a camp by two [shelters?], one day's journey north from this stone. We were fishing one day. After we came home, found ten men red from blood and dead. Ave Maria save [us] from evil. There are ten men by the inland sea to look after our ships fourteen days’ journey from this peninsula [or island]. Year 1362"   What appears above is a summary of the information that appears on the Wikipedia webpage (q.v.).  Most scholars consider the stone a hoax, but the idea is certainly plausible: if the Vikings were able to navigate the Russian river system, they were certainly able to navigate the rivers in Vinland.   In writing this piece, I first wrote a narrative outline in sixteen parts and then composed a short musical motif for each section.  While recording the piece, I introduced each new motif on the piano, and the other musicians immediately began to manipulate it: transposition, inversion, retrograde, retrograde inversion, augmentation, diminution, fragmentation, etc. were all fair game.  The musicians were also told to follow the narrative captions carefully and to improvise in such a way as to set a suitable tone for each part of the story through ever-shifting contrasts in dynamics, texture, tempo, note values, etc.  Finally, collective improvising lies at the very root of jazz, and although this perhaps can’t be called jazz, I had that very much in mind when I composed it.       The motives are labeled as follows: 1. Setting Out 2. Island-Hopping (1’ 00”) 3. Reefs (2’ 00”)  4. Safe Haven (2’ 46”) 5. More Days at Sea (3’ 46”) 6. Outrunning the Storm (4’ 53”) 7. Starry Night at Sea (5’ 59”) 8. Landfall in Vinland (8’ 14”)                         9. Winter Shelter (9’ 20”) 10. The Western Waterway (10’ 24”) 11. The Lake Country (11’ 40”) 12. Reconnaissance (12’ 37”) 13. Death at the Campsite (13’ 12”) 14. Discovery of the Fallen Comrades (14’ 06”) 15. Trapped and Landlocked (15’ 00”) 16. The Scribe at Twilight (15’ 39”) If this piece is successful, you should be able to follow the story without looking at the time elapsed for each section.  Try it.