Harpist and composer Alina Bzhezhinska is set to release her second album, Reflections, Sept. 23 on BBE Music in vinyl, CD, and digital formats. The album is available for pre-order on Bandcamp. Born in Ukraine, Bzhezhinska is now based in London, where she founded HipHarpCollective, featuring Mikele Montolli (electric bass), Adam Teixiera (drums), and Joel Prime (percussion).
Recorded in December 2020 at the Fish Factory Studio, London, Reflections combines original works and covers to pay homage to innovative jazz, funk, and hip-hop artists. The album features layered effects and electronics that expand the harp’s sound world. Bzhezhinska draws from a variety of influences, including Dorothy Ashby’s album Afro-Harping, Alice Coltrane’s spiritual outputs, saxophonist Joe Henderson’s free-form jazz experimentation, ’90s acid jazz, and trip hop. The album features collaborations with British jazz stars Tony Kofi (saxophones), Jay Phelps (trumpet), and Vimala Rowe (vocals), along with supporting musicians Julie Walkington (double bass), Ying Xue (violin and viola), and the HipHarpCollective.
In a press release, Bzhezhinska says that Reflections contemplates her life and musical journey up to this point in her career. As a child, she says she became entranced by her parents’ Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald records. She later fell deeply in love with Coltrane and Duke Ellington, jazz pianist Bill Evans and singer-songwriter Nina Simone. Bzhezhinska says, “The tunes we play are my own reflections on what I love the most: free spirit, courage, innovation and all the beautiful things life is giving us. I hope our music can reach people’s hearts and evoke the full spectrum of colors and emotions, as only the arts can do.”
Bzhezhinska’s upcoming projects include touring the UK and Europe in 2022 with the HipHarpCollective, as well as curating a show in August to raise funds for Ukraine at the B:Music Jazz Festival in Birmingham, England.
Check out Bzhezhinska’s lesson on a Ukrainian traditional folk tune on Harp Column Academy or download her arrangement from Harp Column Music. Both are available free of charge, with an encouragement to donate to Bzhezhinska’s charity fund to benefit Ukrainians in need.
To learn more about Bzhezhinska, visit the HipHarpCollective website or follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
