In case of any doubt, the Arctic credentials of this delightful new release are impeccable. Saxophonist Ola Asdahl Rokkones, who curated the album for LAWO and commissioned all three works, is a native of Tromsø, the third-largest city north of the Arctic Circle, while the Arctic Philharmonic grew out of the old Tromsø orchestra and is based jointly there and in Bodø. The featured composers are rooted north of the Circle, too, Alexander Aarøen (b1993) and Terje Bjørklund (b1945) from northern Norway, Russian-born Alexander Manotskov (b1972) from Archangel.

Although Aarøen is the youngest composer featured, his three-movement The Heart, It Soars (2019) is the most traditional work stylistically, though its three movements are hardly conventionally laid out. The warmly lyrical central span, ‘Spring’, is longer than the opening and closing movements combined. It is a lively, attractive suite, superior light music – and I mean no disparagement – that I could see becoming a rather popular concert and broadcast item.

The oldest work is Manotskov’s Seven Portraits (2011), ironically the most advanced in idiom. His suite is a set of focused and mercurial depictions of the seven archangels of Eastern Orthodox tradition, some of whom – ‘Jegudiel’ (second movement) and ‘Sealtiel’ (in the fifth) – come across as rather mischievous, though in truth most have their moments, except perhaps the ponderous ‘Barachiel’ in the centre. There is a curious Middle Eastern flavour to the score at times, reflecting perhaps the original soil these religious icons grew out of.

Like Seven Portraits, Bjørklund’s Arctic Lines (2020) is overtly descriptive, depicting in turn relentless ‘Arctic Winds’, desolate ‘Arctic Landscapes’, ‘Fighting with the Polar Bear’ and ‘Arctic November’, framed by brief fantasias based on a Sami joik-like melody. Rokkones plays each work with consummate skill; he has a wonderfully warm tone and copes with the technical challenges of each piece with ease. The Arctic Philharmonic make ideal partners, a splendid body of strings scarcely any less in character or quality than their more famous rivals in Bergen or Oslo. A super disc, not in any way chilly!