Yelena Eckemoff on Scenes from the Dark Ages – Jazz Meets Medieval Mystery

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series.

Yelena dives deep into:

The creative inspiration behind the album
Fusing historical themes with modern jazz
Working with elite musicians
The role of storytelling in her compositions
How music helps navigate the complexities of modern life

Described as “spellbinding” and “immersive,” this album is both ambitious and deeply personal — a must-hear for fans of cinematic, genre-defying jazz.

Joe Dimino: Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz Interview Series with jazz pianist Yelena Eckemoff on her 2025 album, ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’. We catch up with an old friend of the show to get into her newest project, described this way: ‘Infusing spellbinding progressive rock with a medieval concept, delivered by a top-tier ensemble. ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’ immerses the listener in a nearly two-hour, surrealistic and spellbinding experience.’ That’s quite a description. We get into this project, modern living, and so much more. It’s always great to catch up with her.

Yelena Eckemoff: It’s wonderful to catch up with you too.

Joe Dimino: I think this might be our fourth interview, so you’re a regular here on Neon Jazz.

Yelena Eckemoff: Yes. Thank you. I know. [laughs] [laughs] I appreciate it.

Joe Dimino:  Yeah. And I really enjoy the album. I’ve already played it on the show, and it’s interesting because we’re living in such strange times right now, particularly since the beginning of the year. So, ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’ just seems to fit the times right now. [laughs]

Yelena Eckemoff: Well, it wasn’t really intended like that, but yeah, you’re right. It’s probably just very appropriate for the times.

Joe Dimino:  So, let’s get into the idea for this. I know this was something you really wanted to do for very personal reasons. Talk to me a little bit about ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’, how the idea came about, and how you developed this album.

Yelena Eckemoff: It took me all my life to process this idea, actually. I have a mental image of the Middle Ages, with its castles and other features, inspired by many of the books I read when I was little, especially fairy tales. When I was growing up, books were the only entertainment available, so I read a lot, especially illustrated children’s books, which basically created that kind of cumulative image in my mind. My project is actually just totally based on the world I created inside myself, first when I was a child, then as I grew up. And it probably has not that much to do with the real history I studied, of course, and I know how the real Middle Ages looked like. But for me, it was fairytale-like. The project, even the paintings I made, looks on the sunny side of the Middle Ages, on the romantic side. More like those images that you have from movies about, like ‘Conan the Barbarian’ or something. [laughs]

Joe Dimino:  Yeah.

Yelena Eckemoff: After immigration, I could do little musically for a number of years while the children were still little. Basically, the only way for me to continue my work was to work in my MIDI studio. And it was a good way for me to have an opportunity not only to compose in the music software, but also to create this project, with a working title of ‘Medieval Symphony’. It was way before I launched my musical career. I really liked that project, but I decided not to release it because I had other CDs I’d released in that era. It was already evident to me that, as a solo player, playing drums, playing all the instruments, I felt like I was short on the real feel of drums, guitars, and everything. So, even though it sounded okay, it didn’t sound good enough for me. And I thought that material deserved better treatment. But then it took me more than 15 years to find great musicians who could bring all those ideas to life. At last, I saw the opportunity to record it and took it. I reworked the project. It wasn’t the same as what I created in my MIDI studio, but it was largely based on it. This is the history of this project. [laughs]

Joe Dimino:  What are you ultimately hoping the listener gets from this album?

Yelena Eckemoff:  I didn’t think about it when I was creating this project. But the medieval era is represented in my melodies. I didn’t use any real medieval melodies; I just created my own. There’s a feeling of this, but it’s also a totally modern sound with rock guitar and world drums. Trilok Gurtu provides those energetic drums as only he can. [laughs] But other instruments that I used, like organs, flute, and violin, hint at the medieval times. So, it’s like an idea: times are distant, but people are the same, and whenever people live, their hearts are filled with their dreams and aspirations, which are basically the same, with just different decorations around [laughs]. So, this project melded distant times with modern times. What do you think?

Joe Dimino:  Yeah, that’s wonderful. And I’m curious, you know, speaking of medieval times, there are a lot of things that have been happening in America, particularly since the beginning of the year, that almost make it feel like we’re going back to dark times, and we’re going back to things that we never thought would happen to human beings. So, I’m curious, with new music out, what does it mean to be an artist, to be able to give your music to the world, to help people feel comfortable, to help them kind of escape some of the ways that we’re living and the things that are going on in this country right now?

Yelena Eckemoff: Well, I don’t want to make an example of myself, but, for me, sometimes it’s hard funding all my music. It is very hard. But if people prioritize what matters to them and work hard, they can do anything. We cannot do too much, but we can do what we can. I can do music, for example, and somebody can do some other thing, you know, and work hard, and make a meaningful contribution to everybody’s lives, right? So, doctors and teachers and radio programmers, [laughs] everybody is involved. We as individuals cannot influence what is happening in the whole world, right? But we can do our part to stay positive and use our talents for the greater good, right?

Joe Dimino:  Absolutely. No, I totally agree.  So, talk to me a little bit about live shows, what’s going on.  If anybody wants to catch this live or get a copy of the album, how can they do that?

Yelena Eckemoff: Yeah, the album is available on Bandcamp in both physical and digital formats, and, of course, is everywhere on streaming services. Bandcamp is probably the best way to get all my albums, including this one. I stopped Amazon completely because it got really bad, and of course, whoever is living in Europe, there is an opportunity to get my physical copies also through in-akustik distribution. It would be really a lot of fun to take it live, maybe even wear costumes, and perform it in a really big venue. But this is just completely impossible, [laughs] because this international team, with Italian musicians, and Trilok Gurtu is based in Germany, and I am here in America, and it’s not possible to arrange it, and unfortunately, it would be too, too expensive and too time-consuming, with everybody being busy. All those musicians are very prominent, and they have a lot of things going on. So, no live shows are planned. But I have videos of live recordings on YouTube. Five tracks were recorded live, and they’re actually the different versions from the album’s one. I have a video EPK, where everybody’s talking about the album, also. So, there are a lot of things out there if you want to dig deeper and learn more about. Also, on my website, I’ve collected all the reviews for my records, and there are already at least 30 for ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’. So, [chuckles] yes, information is plentiful out there. Whoever wants it, I would be happy to provide even more information and answer questions.

Joe Dimino:  So, you know, the one thing about doing interviews now after the album comes out is that you’ve already kind of moved on to the next thing, and I know you’re really regular about releasing material. Are you already thinking about your next project? How do you approach each of these projects? Do you have a yearly timetable? How does that work for you?

Yelena Eckemoff: Yes. I’ve been recording every year since 2010.  It’s actually this year, the 15th anniversary of the release of my first proper, critically acclaimed album. But, yes, I record; sometimes I record twice a year. I already recorded last year in Sweden, so next year’s release will be a Swedish project, with Swedish musicians about Sweden, actually. [laughs] I worked with a cellist, who also played basses, Svante Henryson. So, it’s going to be a very different project from ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’. But then I’m recording another project in the fall, which will be kind of a follow-up to ‘Scenes from the Dark Ages’, but without a medieval theme. So, yes, I constantly juggle between current release, next year’s release, and also this year’s recording. Well, for as long as I’m able, I’m really happy to do that.

Joe Dimino:  Excellent. So again, if anybody wants to pick up a copy head to Bandcamp, or you can stream it.  I will have links in the show notes. And Yelena, it’s always wonderful to catch up with you. Thank you so much for taking a minute out, and best of luck with the release.

Yelena Eckemoff: Well, thank you so much, Joe, it’s always my pleasure to talk to you, and I appreciate your interest and your support.