Orangina is the third album of Catalan sax player-composer Albert Cirera & Tres Tambors, released nine years after Suite Salada (UnderPool, 2017), and titled after the color of the cardboard Cirera used to compose the music for this album. Cirera, on tenor and soprano saxes, and Tres Tambors – pianist and Fender Rhodes player Marco Mezquida, (Swedish) double bass player Marko Lohikari, and drummer Òscar Domènech, began working more than ten years ago and have developed a rich language of their own, which expands the conventions of jazz legacy. The album was recorded at Underpool Studio in Barcelona in June 2025.
Cirera’s twelve compositions for Orangina are based on improvisations of the quartet and were developed through different, clever compositional games. These compositions rely on the organic, and almost telepathical dynamics of Cirera & Tres Tambors, as well as on its non-hierarchical interplay and the strong-minded voices of Cirera, with his commanding, free, and often, openly emotional phrasing, as well as those of Mezquida, Lohikari, who adds spontaneous spoken words on «Jante Law», and Domènech. These compositions forced the four musicians to experiment, create together, and step out of their comfort zones,
The music flows naturally, seamlessly, and highlights the quartet’s nuanced and layered dynamics. It juggles playfully between Cirera’s strong lyrical, touching themes, with hints of Nordic melancholia, especially on «Nordik Premier», and unleashing its stormy, driving power, timbral, and dissonant adventures. It faithfully captures the pure joy and fun of playing together and feels like it can grow further in live performances.
The beautiful cover artwork is by visual artist Antoni Carné, who designed several covers of Cirera’s albums. This time, Carné first listened to the music and then offered Cirera a series of twelve paintings.
Eyal Hareuveni
Albert Cirera (tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone), Marco Mezquida (piano, Rhodes), Marko Lohikari (double bass, vocals), Òscar Domènech (drums)
