This music was written in a period of intense emotions, as the grief and pain of losing my father tangled and fused with horror and despair at the genocide in Palestine – but life is complicated, and the music also comes from joy and love “Listening intently to raptors” is dedicated to the great bassist John Lindberg, and the title comes from an email correspondence we had during covid lockdown. “After a break” appeared fully formed after quite a long period of composer’s block, while listening to Steve Lacy. “Morning mourning” - like the whole album - is about the memory of my father and the process of grief. “Happy song for Joni” is for my beloved goddaughter. “A rush of memory was all it was” is dedicated to Cecil Taylor and Jimmy Lyons, and the title is borrowed from Nathaniel Mackey. “And we dance on the firm earth” is the only tune on the album without a specific dedicatee, the title comes from a Kamau Braithwaite poem.