Chicago saxophonist Juli Wood is clearly a fan of that Farmer album as well. Today is the release date of an impressive quartet album called Synkkä Metsä(OA2)—the title is Finnish for “dark forest”—which was inspired by the Farmer album. The mixture of Finnish, Karelian, and Aland Islands traditional songs are probably more ingrained in Wood’s makeup than those Swedish melodies were for Farmer, though—her grandparents were all Finnish immigrants.

Chicago’s Juli Wood—who plays multiple reeds, but sticks to the tenor saxophone here—explores her Finnish heritage on Synkka Metsa, a collection of Finnish folk songs. Inspired by trumpeter Art Farmer’s Scandinavian foray, To Sweden with Love (Atlantic Records, 1964), that featured quartet with Jim Hall on guitar, Wood employes her own quartet here, with bassist Clark Sommers sitting in on bass, Alejandro Urzagaste on guitar and Mike Schlick on drums.