Sarana

One of my favourite ambient discoveries of all is sarana, the work of a self-effacing chap from Finland named Janne Särkelä. I cant recall where or how I first encountered his work but I was directed to the collection of his works which are available to download for free from the internet archive.

Sarana is a master of the long form ambient style and some of the recordings available on the archive are live performances which were recorded at chillout sessions at festivals in Finland, some are 4 hours plus in length. To me this was a revelation in how this type of beatless, improvised ambient music could function - high on atmosphere, creating a sonic environment to slip into and relax, continuously evolving and modulating, elements coming and going over long periods of time. Fascinating, hypnotic, mesmerizing and also secondary, furniture music for a mood, for relaxation, meditation, reading, working, thinking.

I made contact with sarana and we collaborated on two recordings which were improvised in real time using ninjam via our internet connection across hundred of miles. We have never met but I felt these musical exchanges were a real connection and I will always remember them with real fondness, as one of the best musical experiences of my life.

 
There is a great deal of sarana material available to download and enjoy and I recommend a few of my favourites here.



https://archive.org/details/sarana

Live at Pallomeri

Live at Sai Rave

Live at Konemetsä

sarana and Blu : May Session

Blu and sarana: November Session

https://soundcloud.com/sarana

http://sarana.biz/