Aurora Borealis is a very interesting album of solo piano from
Sun Ra. Side A features two
Ra compositions, "Aurora Borealis" and "Omniscience," both of which feature pretty melodic passages laced with dissonance and some thunderous low chords. Despite getting pretty "out," there is always a strong sense of structure and some downright stunning passages. Side B begins with
Ra interpolating
Rachmaninov's "Prelude in C# Minor" (!), then moving into "Quiet Ecstasy," a beautiful, sparse, and contemplative piece.
Aurora Borealis is one of only a handful of solo piano dates from
Sun Ra, and remarkable for that alone. [This release was remastered and co-produced by
Michael D. Anderson (of the
Sun Ra Music Archive) and
Irwin Chusid, under the auspices of
Sun Ra LLC, the heirs of the late music legend. Original session tapes were used when available and sound quality should surpass all previous CD/digital editions.] ~ Sean Westergaard