Sometimes all it takes is three musicians, masters of their craft, and every note comes to life. Such trios exist in rock, but they are also found – and in far greater variety – in jazz. Gökhan Sürer has added another facet to this jazz mosaic with his album *Celestial*.

To describe an album as “celestial” is bold and sets the bar high. The trio line-up, however, holds great promise: Gökhan Sürer is a Turkish pianist based in Barcelona. There he met the flamenco bassist Sergio Di Finizio and the Salvadoran drummer Octavio Salman. The three of them recorded Celestial together, and the result is varied, atmospheric and imbued with a very distinctive “Jazz, Made in Europe” flavour. What does it sound like?

Likya seems like a poetic portrait of the Turkish region of Lycia, set to music. It repeatedly captures its various dramatic arcs with a gentle, melodic theme, opening the album in a very charming way.

Cinco Ochito blends a rock-inspired drive and powerful sounds with traditional melodic forms that evoke a Turkish feel, whilst the solo passages create a gentler counterpoint; and, as the name suggests, it is written in 5/8 time.

Aynalıçeşme, meaning ‘fountains with mirrors’, portrays the district of the same name in Istanbul with great calm and detail; following a fire at the end of the 19th century, its wooden buildings were faithfully reconstructed, making it a special testament to the architecture of yesteryear. The music is like an attentive stroll and arouses curiosity about the place.

Lowpass flows with verve, its tonality set surprisingly low, as if it were singing the praises of the low-pass filter. However, this tonality also allows the piano runs and synthesiser sounds to come into their own particularly beautifully, which significantly enhances the atmosphere of the piece.

Ayin moves with a heavy foundation beneath the lively, delicate keyboard runs that break into the harmonies, which is charming. The same applies to the partly intricate rhythms and the gripping solo passages.

In ‘Once’, piano runs carry the weight of memory, partly in unison with the bass and, together with the bass, like a sorrowful look back, beneath which a drum solo stirs unease.

And ‘Palmera’ attempts an acoustic portrait of the small Catalan town near the Mediterranean, interestingly featuring electronic sounds from the keys, which creates a bit of a disco or party vibe.

In terms of sound, Celestial is very open and airy. The trio spreads out across a spacious stage and is easy to pinpoint, even in the finer details. Moreover, the spatial sound varies convincingly depending on the track – Palmera, for example, reaches far beyond the centre of the stage with its electronic sounds, creating an astonishing richness of sound in the listening space. The sound engineer certainly knew what he was doing.

All in all: an album that moves you and is fun at the same time! (Thomas Semmler, HighResMac)

Gökhan Sürer, piano & synths
Sergio Di Finizio, electric bass
Octavio Salman, drums