Finland seldom racesto mind as a center for avant-garde jazz, yet the nation on Europe’s northeastcorner has been home to a thriving scene. Prominent among Finnish improvisersis saxophonist-flutist Juhani Aaltonen, 78 years old but undimmed and leading ayoung ensemble in edgy improvisations that follow in the wake of Albert Ayler,Ornette Coleman and John Coltrane. The music on To Future Memories, drawn from compositions for films by AnttiHytti, shifts from relatively relaxed to agitated cacophony with the drop of abeat.
