Ruud Voesten shares follow up to debut album

Coming out of Rotterdam’s jazz scene, Ruud Voesten has become one of Europe’s most imaginative and concept-driven drummers and composers. Known for his visionary approach to contemporary jazz, Ruud transforms literary and philosophical ideas into soundscapes that blur the lines between composition, improvisation and dramatic storytelling. Having first started playing drums as a teenager inspired by punk rock music, his introduction to the world of jazz set him off on a completely different course.

His official journey began during the isolation of the pandemic in 2020 when he started channelling his free time and creative focus into an ambitious project that would fuse music with one of the most enduring works of world literature, Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy. The result of this exciting endeavour was Ambrosia, a twelve-track album inspired by Inferno, Dante’s descent into hell. The record’s dark, intricate compositions and volatile energy captured the emotional chaos of sin and suffering through a jazz ensemble that combined spontaneity with structure.

It was an adventurous and profoundly intellectual debut LP that confirmed Ruud’s knack for crafting music that’s as cerebral as it is visceral, bound together by his masterful rhythmic control and engrossing conceptual vision. Now, Ruud Voesten returns with Ambrosia II, a continuation of his Dantean trilogy that ventures into Purgatorio, the second part of The Divine Comedy. Released through the ZenneZ Records imprint, the album sees Ruud and his ensemble take their sound into new emotional and structural sphere. Ambrosia descended into the chaos of the inferno but Ambrosia II is about ascent, Dante’s climb up Mount Purgatory, where souls are purified through reflection and repentance.

To compose the record, Voesten was invited to stay at Il Palmerino in Florence, a historic residence where Dante himself spent much of his life. Immersed in Italian art and landscape, he found inspiration in the juxtaposition of serenity and struggle, translating it into music that mirrors the process of spiritual growth. The album’s compositions move in stages, each representing one of the seven deadly sins and their corresponding virtues, a sonic map of transformation from darkness to light. Ruud’s bandmates, who joined him on the first Ambrosia project, return to deliver an equally powerful performance, with Mo van der Does on alto saxophone, Wietse Voermans on tenor saxophone, Koen Schalkwijk on piano and synth and Tijs Klaassen on double bass.

Set up by the bright flutter of sax layers, rustle of percussion and plucks of double bass on opening track “Strand,” the lilting sway of the piece is grounded by the Ruud’s brush of cymbal and roll of drums, forming a dreamy jazz experience that slips into a subtly hurried groove. With warm piano notes taking the lead, the track glides with elegant melodic vibes and steady rhythm, floating through a mesmeric scene as stunning sax leads dance atop the charming musical fabric.

“Good things come to those who…” follows with the sparse taps of drum shots, slowly developing with the hushed texture of instrumentation, forming a fragile and patient intro to the ten minute piece. Gradually progressing with the soothing tones of drifting strings and piano, half way through, the song takes on a more progressive style with jaunty synth tones, unnerving brass elements, bright sax pips and graceful improvised piano all carried by the steady march of Ruud’s assured, shifting percussive performance.

With “Icarus,” the intricate lines of layered sax ushers in a smooth rhythm of pattering drums and delightful piano before Tijs Klaassen’s slick bass performance takes the lead. Other highlights on the release come with songs like “The best at marshmallow test” with its playful sax melodies giving way to a bouncy soundscape of staccato bass notes and developing arrangement, resulting in an engaging outing packed full of twists and turns, brought o life by sensational musicianship and performance talent.

“Raw Beans” slowly drifts into focus with calm piano notes, developing with tender and subtly melancholic saxophone line to cast a stripped back and truly hypnotic moment on the album. Closing the work with “Tuin,” the uneasy notes of muted sax is met with brooding string sweeps, crafting an intriguing scene before Ruud’s rumbling drums injects energy. Abruptly shifting with the twinkle of chiming piano notes, the piece glides into a second act to give a sense of transformation, offering a dazzling finale to Ruud Voesten’s incredible sophomore record.

With Ambrosia II, Ruud Voesten once again confirms his place as a modern jazz auteur and an artist able to leap into history, philosophy and faith while reimagining them through rhythm and sound. In Dante’s climb through purgatory, he finds a mirror for human endurance and artistic renewal and in doing so, he crafts music that feels timeless, searching and profoundly alive.

Listen to Ambrosia II below