Vernal Equinox (1976)

"Hassell's first recording as a solo artist. "Toucan Ocean" opens with two gently swaying chords and delicate layers of percussion that provide a cushion upon which Hassell unfurls long, winding melodic shapes. His trumpet is sent through echo and an envelope filter, producing a stereo auto-wah-wah effect. "Viva Shona" features accompaniment by mbira, subtle polyrhythmic layers of percussion, and the distant calling of birds. In "Blues Nile" Hassell's breathy, multi-tracked trumpet lines call and respond to one another, weaving a web of deep calm over an ever-present drone. This track clearly points to his later work with Brian Eno. On the title track, Hassell's "kirana" trumpet style is in full bloom. The influences of his study of raga are clearly discernible in the curvaceous melodic lines and overall sense of meditative calm within harmonic stasis. Throughout the album, percussionists Naná Vasconcelos and David Rosenboom add subtle, supple grooves and colors." (Mark Kirschenmann, Allmusic)