The jazz harp has enjoyed a surprising renaissance in recent years: we can look to New Yorker Brandee Younger, and the various harp-centric ensembles of trumpeter Matthew Halsall, to find evidence of a re-emergent enthusiasm for exploring its possibilities on both sides of the Atlantic: reissues of albums by Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane fan the flames. As soundtrack scorers know, the sound of the harp can be powerfully atmospheric: on this debut release by her eponymous project, Maria Christiana Harper uses her comprehensive technique tastefully and subtly to establish a powerful mood, and expands her sonic vocabulary with various electronic effects to striking effect.

Josephine Davies’ saxophones and clarinets provide the perfect complement to Harper’s compositions: cyclical ostinatos overlaid with modal melodies reflecting her Eastern Mediterranean heritage. Evan Jenkins supplies flexible and sensitive drumming that supports but never overwhelms. The mood is predominantly introspective and contemplative, and the three extremely accomplished players impress with their empathy and restraint. Eminently relaxing, this album would be very effective as a late-night mood enhancer, and stands high above the vast corpus of bland ambient by virtue of its accomplishment and the way that it never condescends to the listener.