'In Essence' is a welcome return to subtlety, depth, and direct communication. This new album from Iman Spaargaren (clarinet & saxophone) and Peter Bjørnild (double bass) was made using just one carefully placed Josephson C700S (3-capsule) stereo microphone. The entire performance was captured live in the room and recorded directly to Pure DSD256. It’s an old-school method in a high-tech frame, a reminder that sometimes the most advanced thing you can do is keep it simple.
In Essence is an intimate, thoughtful exploration of the Great American Songbook, featuring songs like 'My Funny Valentine', 'In a Sentimental Mood', and 'Stolen Moments'. But unlike most modern jazz albums, these are not elaborate reworkings or long improvisations. The duo has chosen to keep each track short, distilled down to its melodic and emotional core. It’s as if the goal wasn’t to impress with complexity, but to offer a clear, focused experience of each tune, each one a small, self-contained meditation, a kind of musical haiku, concise, almost fragile in its clarity, capturing the essence of melody and melodic improvisation. The result is music that doesn’t explain itself, it simply is.
The interplay of clarinet or saxophone and double bass feels like a conversation between friends, sometimes melodic, sometimes contrapuntal, always personal. It’s a modern take on a two-part invention, rooted in swing, blues, and lyricism.
Iman Spaargaren’s tone, whether on clarinet or tenor saxophone, is open, warm, and completely natural, focused on storytelling rather than technical display. His phrasing feels effortless and honest, never forced. His approach comes straight out of the jazz tradition.
In contrast, Peter Bjørnild, whose roots besides jazz and blues include formal classical education, brings a strong architectural sensibility to the music. His lines are melodic, emotionally grounded, and structurally sound, sometimes leading, sometimes anchoring, always listening. The result is a rare equality between voices.
The superb sound quality invites you into the studio, up close, sitting still, noticing, listening: two instruments, the space between them, the breath before each phrase, the resonance of air and wood. In Essence is a quiet, heartfelt reminder of the beauty of musical intimacy.
