A slow cook of a release, its roots deep in a 2015 concert piece commissioned by Tomorrow's Warriors with support from PRS Women Make Music, Polyhymnia is a celebratory paean to the brave, the gentle, those that won't back down. We'll all tip our hat to that: but what's the music like? Well, as you ask, it's rich, sonorous, big, melodic, puts a kick in your heels and a smile on your face. Worthily dull it's not. Music that's so studio based, so long in the pot, can grow fussy, over-egged: but, helped by partner and producer Noel Langley, Ahmed has kept a light touch, mixing large ensemble themes with threads of electronics, a little anarchy from her Kaoss Pad, and an array of soloists, notably women, who contribute spark and edge. There's also a diversity of styles that keeps the listener curious and surprised. ‘Lahan al-Mansour’, dedicated to Saudis first female film director, most obviously draws upon Ahmed's Gulf roots, but her full-toned flugelhorn also echoes Kenny Wheeler's contributions to Rabih Abou-Khalil's great albums like Blue Camel. But on ‘Barbara’, dedicated to Barbara Thompson's ongoing creativity despite her chronic illness, there are jazz rock themes, a playing with tempo and rhythms that echo yet develop Thompson's work over the decades. Other surprises abound: bet you don't see ‘Men of Harlech’ coming on the Suffragette-inspired ‘Deeds Not Words,’ or the brass spikes that crunch against the Mardi Gras piano rolls of ‘Ruby Bridges’. If you want an album that can make you dance and think, explore and exult, sing and sigh then look no further than Polyhymnia.