Horizon to Depths: Madis Muul’s New Single Charts an Inward Journey
Madis Muul’s String Quartet No. 1: Echoes of Layers lands with clarity and purpose. Performed by the Muul Ensemble and sparked by a solitary walk through the woods, it fuses European contemporary craft with the quiet gravitational pull of South Indian Carnatic sensibility. The writing is taut, the ear is generous, and the journey feels essential.
The triptych form is beautifully judged. Horizon. Unfolding opens broad and slow, then slips into finely etched detail. Growth. Time, shaped by Percy Smith’s 1910 film The Birth of a Flower, lets transformation speak in patient pulses. Depths. Cells turns inward, glowing with tampura-like resonance that guides the listener toward the microscopic and the spiritual. It grips without grandstanding and lingers after the final resonance fades.
Muul’s range—jazz piano studies at Siena Jazz University, composition at ArtEZ, and deep collaboration with percussionist Giridhar Udupa—grounds the quartet’s rhythm, color, and sense of time. Accolades follow suit: the Estonian Theater Award (2022) for original music, second place at the International Songwriting Awards, and recognition at the Estonian Jazz Awards. All About Jazz has called his music “cosmic, tender, and deeply immersive,” and this release proves the point.
Expect a WAV master, videos, images, and behind-the-scenes features, plus live dates with potential festival stops at Tallinn Music Week and Jazzkaar. String Quartet No. 2 arrives in spring 2026, with both quartets slated for a special vinyl edition. Add Echoes of Layers to your playlist the moment it lands—this is music that deepens with every listen.
