Set for release on October 23rd, 2026 via Unit Records, the album grew from Baldes’ immersion in Japanese literature, film and art during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inspired by the seventeenth-century haiku master Matsuo Bashō, he set out to translate the poems’ economy, abstraction and vivid imagery into an instrumental language shaped by rhythm, sound and improvisation.

Rather than illustrating the poems directly, the music embraces their openness and restraint. Like haiku themselves, the compositions favour suggestion over explanation, using space, texture and collective improvisation to capture fleeting impressions. Performed by a chordless quartet, the absence of piano or guitar creates an open harmonic landscape where melody and interaction take centre stage.

Baldes is joined by saxophonist and bass clarinettist Christoph Irniger, bassist Raphael Walser and drummer Lukas Mantel. Together, the quartet balances lyrical writing with spontaneous interplay, combining contemporary jazz language with a highly textural approach that reflects the clarity and concentration of Bashō’s poetry.

The project also reflects Baldes’ long-standing interest in artistic dialogue across disciplines. Alongside his work as a musician, he has pursued a parallel career as a painter and sculptor, written music for film and radio, collaborated with writers and multimedia artists, and led a succession of acclaimed ensembles including Subnoder, Soundfields, Spacetracker and Bloom Effect.

With Bashō, Jochen Baldes presents a recording that unites contemporary improvisation and literary inspiration through an understated exploration of space, sound and the expressive possibilities of simplicity.