Jazz Finland Live

Free entry

Keyboardist Nikita Rafaelov performs material from his upcoming solo album.

”Heart Does What Heart Wants” is keyboardist/producer Nikita Rafaelov’s latest solo project, on which he deals with themes from his own life; relationships, the pain of loss and letting go, and the power of creation. The album will be out on Eclipse Music in late September.

Musically and sonically, the project is built by combining acoustic and electronic instruments, using samples, field recordings, various synthesizers and drum machines. Drawing influences from the aesthetics of jazz, hip-hop, new age and ambient, Rafaelov’s album ventures somewhere in the worlds of jazz, alt pop, lo-fin and hi-fin, surrealism and realism, as well as maximalism and minimalism.

Each song is its own little story, like a painting that Rafaelov paints on canvas together with top musicians who guest on the album. The album features many musician friends who are important and inspiring to Rafaelov, and togehter they bring the compositions to life with their own unique interpretation. Guest artists are: Teppo ”Teddy Rok” Mäkynen, Tapani Rinne, Paleface, Spirit Eagle, Adele Sauros, Silva Kallionpää, Joonas Tuuri, Jonas Due (DK) and Oilly Wallace (DK).

Rafaelov builds his solo performance around an acoustic piano, synthesizers and a sampler. The concert will feature material from the upcoming album, but also spontaneous unreleased songs and improvisations.

Nikita Rafaelov, piano, synthetisizers, sampler

Open event