H I G H L I G H T S 4 / 2 0 1 7

OLLI KORTEKANGASDe virtute in virtutem – Songs of a Pilgrim (2011) Dur: 25’soprano, contralto, tenor, bass

and 12 period instruments

Text: Lat

This work is a sort of journey through time, new music that pays homage to the masters of eras past in the manner of Gregorian chant. Its main source is the Finnish Hymn Book of 1701 with its lofty melodies. It begins and ends in unison and in between expands into rich textures. The work ends in meditative mood with rippling strings and a sense of time-space created by antique cymbals (crotales).

NILS LINDBERG A Christmas Cantata (2002) Dur: 50’soprano, baritone, mixed chorus and

big band: 1000-1440-11-0-pf-4sax-

drums-db

Text: Bible’s Christmas Gospel (Eng)

A Christmas Cantata is based on traditional English Christmas carols joined together by newly written music to texts taken from the Bible´s Christmas Gospel. It comprises a delightful mix of Christmas melodies, Swedish folk music, classical and jazz. The work has been performed with great success throughout Europe and in the USA.

JYRKI LINJAMASuomalainen Stabat Mater/Finnish Stabat Mater (2012) Dur: 25’soprano, alto, kantele and string

orchestra (or string quartet)

Text: trad. liturgical,

transl. August Ahlqvist (Fin)

Linjama’s music leaves room for extremes, both sensitive and rough. It uses the kantele as a symbol of timelessness and allows the pain of the text to come close. The music is often divided between the soloists in the manner of hoquetus, bringing the diff erent timbres into an intimate dialogue.

Vanitas (2013) Dur: 30’mixed choir and orchestra: 2222/4210/11/

str. Text: Bible (Fin)

A commission from the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle), Vanitas is powerful music, a reminder from the Preacher that all is vanity and that all must perish. A brief introduction leads to a jubilant exaltation of youth that gives way to the elegiac nature of old age and death. The orchestral part is rich in harmonies and timbres, whereas the choral writing tends towards pragmatism and simplicity.

ROLF MARTINSSON St. Luke Passion (2012) Dur: 90’ mezzo-soprano, baritone, reciter,

mixed chorus and small ensemble:

fl ute, oboe, cello, organ, double bass

ad lib, drum ad lib

Text: Gospel of St. Luke,

Göran Greider (Sw/Ger)

Martinsson’s Passion is based on the stylistic idiom of the Ba-roque, but makes excursions into other styles via Romanticism to a more modern tone language with, e.g., spoken choruses. The text is taken from the Gospel of St. Luke with commenting song texts by Göran Greider, who unites the religious mysti-cism with concrete everyday language. The present meets the past in both text and music. Now also available in a German translation.

OTTO OLSSONRequiem (1901-03) Dur: 58’ soprano, alto, tenor, bass,

mixed chorus and orchestra:

3222-4230-10-1-str

Text: Requiem Mass (Lat)

Otto Olsson was only 23 when he fi nished his magnifi cent Requiem. But the work fell into obliv-ion. The score was found only some years after the composer’s death and it was a great sensation at its premiere in Stockholm in 1976. Here we fi nd the forceful and dramatic, the meditative and mystical, as well as strong, beautiful melodies.

REPER TOIRE T IPS R E V I E W S

SVENDAVID SANDSTRÖMRequiem (2011) Dur: 60’2 sopranos, baritone, bass,

mixed chorus and orchestra:

3333-4222-22-0-org-str

Text: Requiem Mass (Lat)

When Sandström wrote his Latin Requiem he wanted to impart hope through what is beautiful in the music. And Sandström is a master when it comes to cre-ating beauty with the human voice, as in the soprano soloists’ exquisite duets, e.g., in the Lux aeterna movement. Contrast-ing with this are the dark male voices, the deep gongs in the percussion and a powerful and frightening Dies irae. But it is beauty that predominates.

FREDRIK SIXTENRequiem (2007) Dur: 55’ soprano, bass, mixed chorus and

orchestra; 2hn-timp-str (64442)

Text: Requiem Mass (Lat), Bengt Pohja-

nen (Sw), transl. John Hearne (Eng)

Sixten´s Requiem contains both cha-os and anger, but also fervent melodies, evoking a glimmer of light and creating a feeling of atonement and consolation. The work is in some places achingly beautiful; romantic passages are succeeded by more modern sonorities and structures. It is music with depth and it is utterly moving. The text is a synthe-sis of the Requiem Mass and newly written poetry.

ROBERT SUND Mass (2007) Dur: 36’soprano, baritone mixed chorus and

orchestra: 2222-2210-12-0-str

Text: from The Mass (Latin)

In Robert Sund’s Mass diff erent musical styles meet; modern harmo-

nies, lovely musical melodies and Latin American infl uences. The music is at times quite entertaining, as in the Credo with its samba rhythms, but there is also here an underlying gravity that at times takes over, as in the concluding Agnus Dei.

EINOJUHANI RAUTAVAARAGud’s väg (God’s Way) (1964/arr. 2003-05) Dur: 7’for voice and string orchestra

Text: Bo Setterlind (Swe)

1. Guds väg, 2. Barnet, 3. Pingst,

4. Dröm i katedralen

Rautavaara arranged his song cycle for orchestra between 2003 and 2005. The four songs represent an unconventional approach to the Christian way of thinking. The fi rst, God’s Way, is delicate and dreamy, while the second and fourth are faster and more defi ant.

KARI TIKKAViisi laulua Raamatun sanoi-hin/Five Songs to Texts from the Bible (1976/arr. 2003) Dur: 20’voice and chamber/string orchestra

Text: Bible (Fin)

Tikka is known particularly for his spiritual songs, such as these, which also exist in a version for voice and piano. The much loved Grace Song (Armolaulu) – originally from his opera Luther – has been widely performed in diff erent ver-sions. The songs are: 1. Armolaulu (1111/1000/10/hp/str). 2. Rakkaus on! (str), 3. Johanneksen kirje (str), 4. Autuaita ovat (1111/1000/hp/str), 5. Laulun aika on tullut (hp/pf/str).

ERKKISVEN TÜÜRInquiétude du fi ni (1992) Dur: 20’mixed choir and chamber orchestra:

1011/0000/str.

Text: Tõnu Õnnepalu (Fr)

Diff erent textures alternate in a fas-cinating way in this intensive work.

In the 1990s, Tüür sought to build bridges between serialism and minimalism, and his music refl ects his skill at combining divergent elements in a single compact entity. The sombre, apocalyptic text – not sacral in a traditional sense – commu-nicates the disquiet of the end but is at the same time a song of praise to beauty.

Sacred works for chorus/soloists

and orchestra/ensemble

Håkan Hardenberger and Pernilla August

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A guitar universe in fi fteen minutesPetri Kumela the soloist strums, twangs and scrapes the strings while members of the orchestra rub their hands together, for example, and twang rulers. The work is not, however, lacking in lyrical melody. The various textures and instrumental parts neatly overlap, the communal beat being a fundamental element that guarantees both swing and fun for the players. It is fresh, easy-going and at the same time slightly mel-ancholy, a little universe in fi fteen minutes. Hufvudstadsbladet 14.11.

Lotta Wennäkoski: Susurrus (Guitar Concerto)

World premiere: Kymi Sinfonietta/Rumon Gamba, Tapiola Sinfonietta/Taavi Oramo, sol. Petri

Kumela, 11.10.&10.11.2017 Kotka/Espoo, Finland

Fresh, zippy HakolaThe work is characterised by zippy twists…The solo parts are freneti-cally virtuosic almost throughout… Dramaturgically, many of the ideas worked well, especially the strong melodic motif at the end of the fi rst movement, the bizarre waltz in the second movement and the deter-mined ending to the whole work. The frail sounds gilding the beautiful third movement were produced by ordinary drinking glasses. Hufvudstadsbladet 24.9.

Hakola: Double Concerto

World premiere: Tapiola Sinfonietta/John Storgårds, sol. Minna Pensola, violin, Antti Tikkanen,

viola, 22.9.2017 Espoo, Finland

Achingly beautiful CD portraitIn his magnus opus Flaminis Aura the soloist circles around in both an inner and outer universe… and sings a duet with planet earth… The string quartet Il regno degli spiriti seems to be travelling through the same space, while the string trio Sollievo (dopo la tempesta) is more reminiscent of a state of grief in the process of healing… Serenata per Diotima lets the violin stand out in bold relief against a background of romantic fervour and closes the circle on this achingly beautiful portrait record. OPUS # 77 Sept 2017

Tommie Haglund: Flaminis Aura, Il regno degli spiriti, Sollievo (dopo

la tempesta), Serenata per Diotima

CD: Gothenburg SO/David Afkham, sol. Ernst Simon Glaser, cello, Malmö SO/Joachim Gustafsson,

Trio ZPR (BIS-2025 ‘Flaminis Aura’)

The Princess’ TaleThe Princess’ Tale to a text by Mi Tyler, is a companion work that takes up where Stravinsky left off … Staern’s craft of composition is more skilful: his tone language has become more compact, his lyricism is more polished and the energy, the heavy accents, more exact… The narrative has a good fl ow, while the language is coarse and down-to-earth, and the end is relatively happy… this is a work that defi nitely deserves a life after its premiere. Skånska Dagbladet 24.9.

Benjamin Staern: The Princess’ Tale

World premiere: Håkan Hardenberger, trumpet, Baiba Skride, violin, Johnny Teyssier,

clarinet, Sebastian Stevensson, bassoon, Colin Currie, percussion, Olle Elfström, trombone,

Janne Johansson, double bass, Pernilla August and Rebecka Hemse, actors, 23.9.2017

Malmö Chamber Music Festival, Sweden

H I G H L I G H T S 4 / 2 0 1 7

Heart-warming musicThe music was reduced in places to a fragile chamber music texture supported by the strings over which a melancholy bassoon sucked the lis-tener into static, beautiful moments. …The music of Nieminen has a narrative, human-friendly ap-proach that always has some kind of warmheart-edly mischievous potential.elementori.blogspot.fi Oct 2017

Kai Nieminen: Guitar Concerto ‘If on a Winter’s

Night a Traveller...’

Jyväskylä Sinfonia/Ville Matvejeff , sol. John Mills, 4.10.2017

Jyväskylä, Finland

Great concerto for soprano saxAho’s expression is becoming increasingly open, clear and concise… There are more soft, mysterious shades than for a long time, and Paulsson succeeds in charg-ing them with all the necessary intensity.Yle.fi 6.10.

Kalevi Aho: Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and

Orchestra

CD: Lapland ChO/John Storgårds, sol. Anders Paulsson (BIS SACD 2216)

Opulent spectacle in the Luther

yearThe Opernbühne Württembergisches Allgäu cele-brates with the premiere of a Luther opera… Vocal-ly outstanding... Minor and major keys conjure up supernatural soundscapes that echo riotously round the nave. Schwäbische Zeitung 1.10.

Kari Tikka: Luther, opera in two acts

Opernbühne Württembergisches Allgäu/Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller, sol.

Reuben Willcox, Sonja Bühling, Burkhard Solle, etc.

Mühlrad’s KaddishPrayers and testimonies alternate in the work. A sug-gestive opening chorus with humming, dull tones leads to Elie Wiesel’s words: ”For the living and the dead we must bear witness”… The section from Ber-gen-Belsen creates an agitated climax… An extended coda follows with minimalist repetitions of the word ”witness”… A long, devout silence ensued after the fi nal tones; then came a torrent of hearty applause from the audience. Svenska Dagbladet 15.10.

Jacob Mühlrad: Kaddish

World premiere: Swedish Radio Choir/Peter Dijkstra, sol. Eva Dahlgren,

14.10.2017 Stockholm, Sweden

Hugely enchanting Whittall…Performed by the redoubtable pianist Angela Hewitt, the piece was irresistible despite its ab-stract harmonic vocabulary and the absence of tunes or any conventional species of melody. In-deed, it shimmered, sparkled, and even glittered now and then. …It was impossible not to be im-pressed with the clarity Hewitt brought to the demanding score... The “sound eff ects” – waves, bird cries, and so on – were never overstated but woven into the fabric of the score.classicalvoiceamerica.org 11.10.

A distinctive voice that is strongly present at every moment. The overall impression is ex-tremely evocative and – which is interesting – picturesque in the most engaging way.Hufvudstadsbladet 12.11.

Matthew Whittall: Nameless Seas (Piano

Concerto)

World premiere: NAC Orchestra/Hannu Lintu, sol. Angela Hewitt,

5.10. 2017 Ottawa, Canada. Finnish premiere: Finnish RSO/Olari

Elts, sol. Risto-Matti Marin, 10.11.2017 Helsinki, Finland

Whittall writes hugely enchanting music… The most impressive work of all is The return of light, in which he handles the choir and orchestra with sovereign skill. Northlands, for horn and strings, is the disc’s most readily accessible music and could, in its direct beauty, well serve as a fi rst en-counter with contemporary music.Yle.fi 30.10.

Matthew Whittall: Northlands, ad puram anni-

hilationem meam, The return of light

CD: Finnish RSO, Helsinki Chamber Choir, Tapiola Sinfonietta/Nils

Schweckendiek, sol. Tommi Hyytinen, horn (Alba ABCD 416)

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Dazzling and exquisite Dazzling visions and sound revelations, with a touch of an exquisitely beautiful, but harsh, Nordic midwin-ter feeling… Something that stood out with especial-ly memorable beauty in the music and the perfor-mance was the angels’ singing – the women’s choirs. Piteå-Tidningen 15.10.

Sven-David Sandström: Under en kvinnas hjärta

(Under a Woman’s Heart)

World premiere: Piteå Chamber Opera, Norrbotten NEO/David Björkman,

sol. Tove Dahlberg, Ulrika Tenstam, Stephanie Lippert, Hege Gustava

Tjønn, 14.10.2017 Norrviken, Sweden

Heavenly PetterssonLindberg’s careful and gradual release of the work’s tension, marked by some of Pettersson’s most con-solingly beautiful lyricism, was ultimately a (albeit extremely strained) prelude to the long-awaited ap-pearance of the song in pure form. When the song fi nally arrived, free of confl ict, the eff ect could only be described as heavenly.Res Musica 26.9.

Allan Pettersson: Violin Concerto No. 2

Norrköping SO/Christian Lindberg, sol. Ulf Wallin, 21.9.2017 Norrköping,

Sweden

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Eliasson – Symphony No. 3The sonorities are forced upwards into the airy registers, ever higher, at the same time that the lyrical reveries get the motifs to shine from within… With the soprano sax the sound-picture becomes ethereal but also sharper… Both the soloist and the orchestra play with striking precision and presence, and we are reminded of the personal tone in Eliasson’s music.Göteborgsposten 9.11.

Anders Eliasson:

Symphony No. 3

(version with

soprano

saxophone)

World premiere:

Gothenburg SO/

Johannes Gustavsson,

sol. Anders Paulsson,

sopr.sax., 8.11.2017

Gothenburg, SwedenAnders Paulsson

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Orchestra relaxed and enjoyedThe shifting rhythms delightfully carry the orchestra along. This work does not take itself too seriously, and the Chamber Orchestra played it with relaxed enjoy-ment… Nuorvala handles his mate-rial with real skill…archaic tones, an exquisitely toe-curl-ing sound, unbelievably beautiful fl ageolet notes and gamelan allusions. I heard tango in the Blues and heavy rock in the closing Mash-up. Keskipohjanmaa 20.9.

Juhani Nuorvala: Variationes ex ‘Bene quondam’

World premiere: Ostrobothnian ChO/Sakari Oramo, 16.9.2017 Kokkola,

Finland