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Like most musicians who works in various jazz genres, the standards from the great American Songbook have been essential for my musical development. They have also been an important part of my life. The quality of these songs, that have been around for half a century or more, triggers creativity, and it is inspiring and fun to play around with them, and to explore them from new angles. Would it be worth the effort to record my own versions? These songs have been done by so many great artists. What more is to be said? How can I make versions that are relevant in 2022? I wanted to give myself this challenge, and I decided to invite some artists from earlier collaborations in my career. I invited four of my favourite singers, each with a distinct signature and character. Hilde Hefte, Torun Eriksen, Hilde Norbakken and Kari Iveland. Fortunately, they all accepted the invitation. So, what kind of arrangement and instrumentation would suite their unique voices and vocal styles? I worked out different arrangements. Demoes were made and sent around. The final versions ended up in various formats ranging from trio to full band with additional horn arrangement, trying to capture a unique signature based on the significant qualities of these excellent vocalists. I also saw the opportunity to invite one of my absolute favourite guitar players, Allen Hinds into the project, when he visited Kristiansand to give a concert and masterclass. It was an amazing experience to do the recording of Crystal Silence with a musician of his calibre! During some spare time in studio, we tried out a backbeat version of Ornette Coleman's Broadway Blues. I liked the feel of this version, it could work as a good contrasting instrumental piece on the album. Later I also added a horn arrangement to it. Finally, for the last track, we recorded a duo version of the lovely ballad "You Must Believe In Spring" featuring the Swedish double bass player Jan Mathiasson. Rolf Kristensen

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