The CD of Žibuoklė Martinaitytė’s choral works has been praised and chosen as the choral disc of the month by the BBC Music Magazine. The New York Times also highlighted it in ‘5 Classical Music Albums You Can Listen to Right Now’ (See: Reviews). The Latvian Radio Choir is conducted by Sigvards Klava on the Ondine CD. The pieces are available in new editions by Fennica Gehrman.
Martinaitytė writes: “As what is happening in this world so often leaves us speechless, you might find this wordless music quite timely, consoling and liberating.” The title piece Aletheia was sparked off by the attack on Ukraine. Ululations can be taken as a ritualistic expression of mourning and the sorrow of women whose men are at war fighting and dying.
Children’s Lied
The L.I.E.D. composition competition opened in June 2023 culminated in a concert in Helsinki on 23 November. Seventeen of the 247 entries were performed, and the first prizes went to Lauri Honkavirta, Juho Miettinen, Shenran Wang and Pauliina Puukko. The aim of the competition is to expand the children’s Lied repertoire with works by contemporary composers. Fennica Gehrman has published two Children’s Lied collections, and a third is planned of works from this year’s competition.
Editors: Henna Salmela, Kristina Fryklöf
Translations: Susan Sinisalo, Robert Carroll
Cover photo: Aulis Sallinen at the Helsinki Music Centre (Artturi Winstén)
Design: Tenhelp Oy
Click the links, sound and video symbols
ISSN 2000-2750 (Online)
Sanatorium Express to be staged in Australia
Iiro Rantala’s opera Sanatorium Express (Pikaparantola) will be staged in Melbourne on 22 and 27 February by the Australian Contemporary Opera Company at their 2025 International Festival of Contemporary Opera & Song. This delightful opera buffa to a libretto by Minna Lindgren was premiered in Finland, and the most recent performance was last year in Germany, by the Frankfurt Chamber Opera. Poking fun at the wellness industry and our contemporary obsessions with perfection, flaws and fads, Sanatorium Express takes the audience on an uplifting journey blending humour with social commentary.
The Last Temptations
The Last Temptations is to be staged next summer as a joint production by the Savonlinna Opera Festival and Tampere Opera: in Tampere between 5 and 15 March and in Savonlinna in July. A concert version can also be heard in Kuopio in May. Fifty years will have passed in 2025 since the premiere of the opera by Joonas Kokkonen to a libretto by Lauri Kokkonen. It is one of the most popular Finnish operas of all times, its universal themes speaking to audiences year after year. The new production will be directed by Mikko Kouki, and Mika Kares and Silja Aalto will sing the leading roles.
Nelson’s Concerto for Disklavier
Daniel Nelson is composing a concerto for Yamaha Disklavier (self-playing piano) for the Norrlandsoperan Symphony Orchestra. He had already been considering a companion piece to George Antheil’s Ballet Mécanique. “Since Antheil’s work was based on the pianola, it naturally connected with the concept of this commission. In my earlier orchestral piece Steampunk Blizzard , I sought to develop a neo-futuristic style, blending the neo-minimalist influences I’ve long explored with the industrial sounds of the early Futurists. In many ways, the Disklavier concerto serves as a continuation of Steampunk Blizzard – a piece where the machinery becomes part of the music, turning the orchestra itself into a colossal machine.” The new concerto will be premiered on 25 April.
Wennäkoski’s Verdigris a concert hit
Lotta Wennäkoski’s Verdigris has become a new concert hit, and can already boast 16 performances around the world this year alone. Another orchestral favourite by her is Flounce, performed at the BBC Proms and soon a popular curtain-raiser after its premiere. Since the beginning of this year, Verdigris has been played in Australia, Britain, Canada and Sweden, and in various cities in Austria and Finland, among others. Lasting 11 minutes, it was commissioned by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra in 2015. It includes references to music by Jean Sibelius, integrated with Wennäkoski’s personal, capricious idiom.
Lotta Wennäkoski was awarded at the Finnish Music Publishers’ gala in September.
Photo: Tomas Terekas
Photo: Mikko Kauppinen
Photo: Centre de Ville
Marie Samuelsson’s complete Love Trilogy
Marie Samuelsson’s Love Trilogy will be performed for the first time in its entirety at Malmö Live on 13 February 2025. The Trilogy explores the various dimensions of love: the erotic love, the love for a child and love as a force to change the world. The 47-minute work comprises: Aphrodite – Fragments by Sappho for mezzo-soprano and orchestra, A New Child of Infinity for clarinet and orchestra and The Eros Effect and Solidarity. Delyana Lazarova will conduct the Malmö Symphony Orchestra and the soloists are Ann-Kristin Jones, mezzo-soprano and Gustav Wetterbrant, clarinet.
Lindström featured at Rusk Festival
Emmy Lindström was composer of the year at the Rusk Festival on 19.–23.9. in Jakobstad, Finland. It opened with the premiere of the string trio To be or not to be… – POV: Ophelia with Stephen Upshaw, viola. Jonathan Roozeman, cello, and Rachel Breen, piano. “I have written music from Ophelia’s perspective. It is her ‘to be or not to be’, rather than Hamlet’s”, says Lindström. The festival was concluded with the clarinet concerto At the Hills of Hampstead Heath , with Björn Nyman as soloist together with the Vaasa City Orchestra under the baton of Anna-Maria Helsing. Also excerpts from the opera The Gospel of the Eels, an Impromptu for violin and piano, and the popular Song about Em for clarinet and string quartet were featured.
Cecilia Damström’s ICE
Cecilia Damström’s orchestral piece ICE – In Case of Emergency – will have its UK premiere on 21 February with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under the direction of Emilia Hoving. ICE has also been selected for ISCM World New Music Days in Portugal in June 2025. The work was commissioned by the City of Lahti – Green Capital of Europe 2021 – and was premiered by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra conducted by Dalia Stasevska. It depicts the effects of global warming and melting polar ices and was awarded the 2022 Teosto Prize.
Awards to Börtz, Peterson and Samuelsson
Daniel Börtz received both the Swedish MPA Honorary Award and the Classical Music Prize for his Sinfonia 15 at the Awards Gala on 8 November. “With his capacity to combine profound musical complexity with strong emotional resonance, Börtz has created works that are not just moving, but also challenging. Throughout a long and brilliant career he has explored music’s utmost limits with great sensitivity and artistic integrity, always with a soundscape that reflects both what is human and what is ethereal”, write the Music Publishers in their reasoning.
Matthew Peterson has been awarded the Royal Academy of Music’s Little Christ Johnson Prize for his Högalid Mass for mixed choir, brass quartet, percussion, organ and string orchestra, to texts by Gunilla Lindén. “With a rhythmically varied and brilliant tone language, Peterson gives new life to the message of the Mass, that touches us deeply.”
The Swedish Society of Composers has awarded Marie Samuelsson the Rosenberg Prize for an artistic career that, with its unique voice and tonal imagination, has enriched the Swedish music scene. “Her music combines human and nature-inspired themes with a distinctive power and musical integrity. With a profound connection to the present, she weaves together the intimate and the monumental, creating a timeless soundscape that resonates both nationally and internationally.”
Esa Pietilä at 60
Esa Pietilä is a Finnish saxophonist and composer of works delightfully combining classical music with jazz. He has, among other things, been the soloist in the Tenor Sax Concerto by Kalevi Aho also released on the BIS label. His own works include Graffiti Play for jazz trio and chamber orchestra and Kairos Ludus, a concerto for violin, tenor saxophone and orchestra. He also has plans for a concerto for violin, string orchestra and percussion commissioned by the St Michel Strings. Spring 2025 will see the publication of the score of his String Quartet No. 2 “Icons of blue, black & sun”. Pietilä has been awarded a five-year state grant for artists starting in 2025 and he turned 60 in December this year.
Daniel Börtz
Photo: Kevin Åkerlund
Matthew Peterson
Marie Samuelsson
Emmy Lindström
Photo: Patrik Stenström
Photo: Camilla Svensk
Photo: Johan Bergmark
Photo: Mats Bäcker
Seven questions for Mats Larsson Gothe
You have just recently been in London where your orchestral piece Submarea was performed by the Philharmonia Orchestra and Santtu-Matias Rouvali. Could you tell us about the piece and its performance in London?
“In February of this year five Nordic works –one from each Nordic country – were premiered by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra in a collaboration with the underwater filmmaker Joakim Odelberg called ‘Nordic – A Fragile Hope’. Submarea was my contribution and it functions as a concert opener in which the music could be experienced as traveling farther and farther down into the ocean depths. The concert with the Philharmonia Orchestra in November formed part of a series called ‘Nordic Soundscapes’, which aims to focus on our vulnerable nature and the problems we humans have inflicted on it. It was fantastic to get the opportunity to work with Santtu-Matias and this excellent orchestra!”
After focusing on opera composition for some time, you have received several orchestral commissions in recent years – in addition to Submarea, a Cello Concerto and Symphony No. 4, which had its premiere during the Baltic Sea Festival in August of this year. Can you tell us more about the symphony?
“In my Third Symphony I reused music from my opera Blanche and Marie. This time I wanted to write a symphony from scratch, constructing long lines out of a homogeneous musical material. The spark that set it all off was my anger over a meaningless war that had just broken out when I began composing. This gave the music an essentially dramatic character. Knowing I would be writing for the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, I could tailor my music to the musicians I knew there, resulting in many different solo contributions, as well as a focus on various groups such as trombones and tubas. I try more and more to utilize the contrast between tutti and smaller groups in the orchestra. Everything should be heard. While the score may appear sparse, there is still a surprisingly full sound.
Next year will see the premiere of your Cello Concerto with the Stockholm Royal Philharmonic. Can you say something about this work and your collaboration with the soloist Torleif Thedéen?
“Torleif and I go way back. I have previously written a Concerto for Cello and Winds (1999), as well as the double concerto Sisyphus’ Dreams (2010) for him and violinist Cecilia Zilliacus. He has also performed my piece Epilogos for cello and piano a number of times. Therefore, it felt natural to write a new concerto for him, with the whole palette of expression that I know he masters. Torleif has a fantastic tone – powerful,
yet infinitely emotional, with a melancholy undertone that I love! And we are now both in our sixties so, consciously or subconsciously, a retrospective character, with an awareness of ‘having entered the second half of our lives’ has been creeping into the music.”
At present you have returned to opera composing, with an opera about author and Nobel Prize winner Selma Lagerlöf for the 50th anniversary of the Wermland Opera in 2026. Can you tell us a little about the project?
“Maria Sundqvist, who also wrote the libretto to ‘Blanche and Marie’, has created a very fine narrative about Selma Lagerlöf, whom we meet at a late stage in her life. Rather tired and burnt out, she says that she only ‘lives by force of habit’. Then suddenly something happens that stirs her to come alive again and gives her a new lease on life at the age of 70. I won’t reveal more than that just now. Sundqvist has written an ingenious and moving libretto, also with a good sense of humour – something that I enjoy working with. Moreover, the work will be premiered by the Wermland Opera in Karlstad, where I attended
secondary school in the 1980s, so this feels just great! As I grew up in Värmland, Selma has been a constant companion.”
Your latest opera The Promise (Löftet), which was staged again early this year by the Royal Opera in Stockholm, contains many fine choruses. As a result you were awarded the Royal Swedish Opera Choir’s Prize and also received a commission (Pigeons) from the Swedish Radio Choir. What is your relationship to choral music? Is it something you would like to work more with?
“Writing for choir is both fascinating and a real challenge. It requires that you find a simplicity that gives maximum returns. Making things overly complicated seldom benefits the outcome. Composers such as Sven-David Sandström and Anders Hillborg have written choral music that is very interesting. As for myself, I would like to write works with a faster tempo – although it needs to be carefully balanced to avoid becoming chaotic. In Sweden there are many top-notch choirs with a great variety of aims and working methods. I therefore want to write music that reflects the versatility of these choirs and can be adapted to different levels and contexts. To my
Photo: Maria Gothe
great delight, we have now started to publish the choruses from The Promise separately. And composing for choir and orchestra is indeed wonderful!”
You have just finished your work in the jury for the International Uuno Klami Composition Competition together with composer colleagues Kalevi Aho, Lotta Wennäkoski and Magnus Lindberg. What was the most exciting part of this task?
“We received some 230 scores for the competition, 5 of which we selected for the final round. It was very instructive and interesting to read through the scores, and to reflect over the relationship between intention and notation. A score that contains interesting details might not communicate by forming a whole in concert, but a score that perhaps looks simple on paper can be heard as perfect in form when it is performed. Moreover, it was a privilege to spend time in the company of the other composers in the jury, a real vitamin injection sorely needed for a person who works mostly alone as a creator of music.”
What will your next composition be? You have spoken about a fifth symphony that would be something completely different from your Symphony No. 4. In what way?
“I ponder a great deal about what it is that communicates with the listener. What is it that enables one to grasp an extended musical course of events without losing focus? I have had very good response when it comes to my operas, where I have a text and thus a builtin dramaturgy to relate to. But purely instrumental music is more difficult. It is easy to give birth to new ideas, but how do you manage them in the best possible way so they become tools to express something bigger, such as human emotions? Form is crucial to me, though I feel that I sometimes do things too quickly for audiences to keep up. Yet, I strive for musical variety and to avoid monotony.
Now I want to make the best use of my time, and I have a feeling that I need to work in large forms – opera and symphony – to do myself justice. My fifth symphony, I imagine, will be entirely seamless. Perhaps a work in one movement lasting about 20 minutes (the same length as Sibelius’ 7th) and with a lyrical expression that flows slowly without interruption (like a slow movement à la Mahler, e.g., the last in his 9th). That is at the top of the list now. If the 4th was dramatic, I think the 5th should be infinitely warm and intimate.”
Kristina Fryklöf
REPERTOIRE TIPS
KALEVI AHO
Rakkaus on musta leijona (Love Is a Black Lion) (2010) Dur: ca 12’ for female quartet or small female choir (SSAA)
Text: Mawlana Rumi, transl. Jaakko Hämeen-Anttila (Fin)
Aho’s lyrical interpretation of Mawlana Rumi’s (1207-1273) impressive poems was composed in 2010. The beginning is ethereal, accompanied by a tinkling triangle, and the intensity gradually grows in keeping with the text. The second movement is a delicate love song, but the world of the poems is also tinged with some darker shades, as proved by the more dramatic third movement.
TIMO ALAKOTILA
Valo (Light) (2021). Dur: 5’30 for descant choir (SSAA)
Text: wordless
This work radiates hope and light, as was intended, as it was written during the pandemic. The music presents beautiful harmonies and creates a soothing atmosphere, proceeding at a peaceful tempo. Alakotila is a distinguished and active talent on the Finnish music scene – a master of various genres and folk in particular.
JOHANNA ALMARK
Tänään ja tuhat vuotta (2022) Dur: 4’ for descant choir (SSA) and piano
Text: Heta Heiskanen (Fin)
A lively, spirited choral work by a talented composer-musician that goes with a rhythmic swing and is interspersed with beautiful oases of calm. The words are a hymn of praise to the power of singing and biodiversity. Suitable for either youth or women’s choir.
ALEX FREEMAN
I Feel the Same Way - Three songs of Lilian Moore (2015) Dur: 7’ for children’s choir (SSA) (Eng)
A work inspired by the evocative snapshots of childhood Freeman found in the lovingly prepared poetry of Lilian Moore. The artwork of Robert Quackenbush further helps to transport young singers to the microuniverses of the poems. The fourth “voice” is rain, produced by members of the choir and sounding uncannily like light rain outside.
LARS KARLSSON
Två körvisor för diskantkör (Two songs for descant choir) (SSAA) (1987) Dur: ca 4’
Text: Gustav Fröding (Swe)
These two settings of refined texts by the Swedish poet Gustav Fröding have a feeling of folk music with brisk melodies. Äktenskapsfrågan (The Marriage Question) studies the problems of the everyday life of a couple in a humoristic way. Kung Liljekonvalje (King Lily-of-the-valley) is a swinging elegy with a text that describes a fairytale about lilies-of-the-valley deep in the forest.
OLLI KORTEKANGAS
Luotujen virsi (2019) Dur: 10’ Missa brevis for descant choir (SSA) and piano (organ ad lib.)
Text: Pekka Kivekäs (Fin)
Kortekangas links lines from the Kyrie, Sanctus and Agnus Dei with the voice of today. The text, which is modern despite being in the archaic Kalevalaic meter, serves as the Laudamus part of the Mass. Kortekangas encourages experimentation with different modes of performance: some of the movements are with piano accompaniment while others may use an organ or other accompanying instruments. The vocal parts can be doubled or if necessary replaced by obbligato instruments.
MATTHEW PETERSON
You are my hiding place (2023) Dur: 6’ for female choir (SSAA)
Text: Psalm 32 (Eng)
A piece commissioned for a concert on the theme of fristad, which can be translated as both “refuge” and “sanctuary”. Peterson found those meanings in the beautiful Psalm 32 and writes:
Works for descant choir
“The music begins with an intimate theme that revolves around the tone G, but then blossoms out into “songs of deliverance”, cathedral music with extended harmonic sequences set layer upon layer. This music is both a refuge and a liberation for us humans.”
EINOJUHANI RAUTAVAARA
I min älsklings trädgård / In My Lover’s Garden (1993) Dur: 9’ for female choir (SSAA)
Text: Edith Södergran, transl. Jaakko Mäntyjärvi (Swe/Eng)
A set of three songs which also exist in a version for voice and piano. The first, In the Great Wild Woodlands, is beautiful and lyrical and the third (Lucky Cat) light and playful. In Between Grey Stones begins with a melody for the altos accompanied by the others with figures in seconds or thirds. Sometimes the roles change, and the voices form a hypnotic weave evocative of a flock of birds.
KARIN REHNQVIST
Till ängeln med de brinnande händerna (To the Angel with the Fiery Hands) (2003) Dur: 9’ for female choir (SSAA) + oboe alt. clarinet
Text: Björn von Rosen (Swe)
“I was looking for a text where the oboe could remain independent, but nevertheless sometimes merge with the choir”, writes Rehnqvist. “I found Björn von Rosen’s incredibly beautiful poem. The musical language, as always with me, is inspired by older Swedish folk music in its modality, and with quarter-tones in the oboe and traces of Nordic herding calls in the choir. In the middle part the fusion of the voices with the instrument becomes especially palpable. Which is voice? Which is instrument?”
My Dreamsong (2024) Dur: 4’ for children’s choir (SA), C- or Bb-instrument and piano
Text: Karin Rehnqvist, transl. Anna Högberg, Sally Beamish, Peter Thomson (Eng) In the project New Music for Young Voices, children’s choirs all over Sweden got the opportunity to write music together with composers – a way of allowing children to participate in the creation of music, with inspiration from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. In My Dreamsong children from the Nacka Music School have created the arabesque that the whole piece is based on.
Du får inte sitta här!/Not Allowed! (2022) Dur 3’ Jag vet, jag duger/I Know, I’m Able (2023) Dur: 2’10’’ for children’s choir (SA), piano and 1-2 saxophones or optional instruments
Text: Karin Rehnqvist, transl. Sally Beamish and Peter Thomson (Eng) Rehnqvist was here inspired by her two-year old grandchild and her candid manner of singing. There are many prohibitions: “No!”, “Don’t!”, “Stop!”. “The question is, when a children’s choir sings, is it the children’s revenge on the adults, or only their account of what they always get to hear”, writes Rehnqvist. Not Allowed! was commissioned by the contemporary music festival Svensk Musikvår (Swedish Music Spring) and was composed for the Adolf Fredrik music classes and the Stockholm Saxophone Quartet.
JAN SANDSTRÖM
Biegga Luohte (2002/2023) Dur: 5’
Arr. by Ulrika Emanuelsson for female choir (SSSSAAAA) and drum
Text: Johan Märak (yoik)
“For me Biegga Luohte is one of the cornerstones of Swedish choral music” writes Emanuelsson.
“With its yoik, rhythms and play with vocal sounds, the work has a distinctly Nordic feeling. Moreover, it is a fantastic competition piece; It is especially refreshing that the female voices can express themselves in a rough and candid manner. Once you have heard Biegga Luohte you will never forget it.”
AGNETA SKÖLD
Prayer of Saint Francis (2024) Dur: 3’ for female choir (SSAA)
Text: Saint Francis of Asissi (Eng)
Commissioned by the Mädchenkantorei am Freiburger Münster and dedicated to victims of war and violence. The composer writes: “As a singer in Eric Ericson’s choirs I had often encountered the most demanding music. When I started to compose, the focus was on voice, craft of composition and singability. It should be enjoyable to both sing and listen to my music. Prayer of Saint Francis is no exception. The text is always central and every vocal part is equally important.”
Aulis Sallinen: music aims at a different humanity
Aulis Sallinen, who will turn 90 on 9 April 2025, kindly gave us permission to print the speech he made at the award-giving ceremony in September when he received the Honorary Award of the Finnish Music Publishers.
Iwould like to express my warmest thanks for the honour. It means a lot to me, because being a composer, I know how important your work is in getting music heard.
It has been a pleasure to observe the trend in publishing in Finland. I was once involved for a long time with the Society of Finnish Composers and the Finnish copyright organisation Teosto, and I know that things have not always been so good. I can remember a time when you were
lucky to get your music published, especially if it was an orchestral work. It was mainly up to orchestras and others to see that the conductors and performers got the copies they needed to play from. Sometime later, the Finnish Music Information Centre (nowadays Music Finland) also helped. Today, things are different, and modern technology has undoubtedly occupied a big, maybe decisive role in this.
Looking around at events in the world today, the old saying that war and hostility are and always have been with us seems to be blatantly true. We can, therefore, with good reason be proud to say that what we do – by which I mean composing and getting music heard in the concert hall – represents humanism in its purest form. It aims at a different humanity and world. Let us be proud of this.
Erkki Melartin jubilee
On 7 February next year, 150 years will have passed since the birth of Finnish composer Erkki Melartin (1875–1937). The occasion will be celebrated each month during the jubilee year with events, exhibitions and concerts in different parts of Finland.
Melartin was active in just about all walks of life: composer, conductor, music theory and composition teacher, as well as principal and developer of what is now the Sibelius Academy. He was a great aesthete, a fine visual artist and widely acquainted with the history of art. He loved trees, did yoga and was a vegetarian. A fascinating individual,
his attitude to life was tempered by ill health and the constant proximity of death. As a teacher, he supported the studies and careers of those with an interest in music regardless of background and gender.
Erkki Melartin’s star has been very much in the ascendence over the past 30 years, thanks both to the active work of the Melartin Society and the serious research into him carried out in the present millennium. Of major significance here has been the clean-copy project conducted by Fennica Gehrman; as a result, quality material is now available of all his six symphonies, the symphonic poem Traumgesicht (Nocturnal Vision, Op. 70), the
tone poem Marjatta (Op. 79) and the orchestral suite from the ballet Sininen helmi (The Blue Pearl, Op. 160).
The first biography of Melartin by Tuire Ranta-Meyer is scheduled for publication on his birthday. The Sibelius Academy will receive the gift of a portrait of Melartin dating from 1922, and a gala concert will be held that evening at the building procured by him after considerable effort in 1932.
In March, there will be several concerts featuring music by him. The Lohja Orchestra and the Jyväskylä Sinfonia will perform his Symphony No. 6. Symphony No. 3 will be in the repertoire of the Hyvinkää Orchestra. Esa Ylönen (piano) and ensemble will be playing works by Uuno Klami, Helvi Leiviskä and Sulho Ranta, all composition students of Melartin.
In May, the Helsinki Metropolitan Orchestra will give the premiere performance of Melartin’s 24-song cycle of settings of poems by V.A. Koskenniemi with orchestral accompaniment. Lieder, chamber and keyboard music will be on the concert programmes at museums and music colleges, and concerts will be held at the Savonlinna Music Academy and at the Tulindberg Week in Oulu. Melartin has been chosen as Composer of the Year for the Arabia kaikuu festival in Helsinki, and his grand Wagnerian opera Aino (Op. 50) is to premiere in Mikkeli and Savonlinna in January 2026. Further information is available on the Erkki Melartin Society’s home page at erkkimelartin.fi.
Tuire Ranta-Meyer
Photo: Artturi Winstén
REVIEWS
Rhythmic groove from Antti Auvinen
Crème fraîche was a brilliant starter for an unusually sonorous line-up… A glowing setting of one long phrase by the poet Harry Salmenniemi, it had more jazz in it than any of the other works on the programme, or at least snappy rhythmic groove. Helsingin Sanomat 26.11.
Antti Auvinen: Crème fraîche
World premiere: Sointi Jazz Orchestra, Helsinki Chamber Choir/ Atso Almila, 21.11. 2024 Tampere, Finland
Kortekangas opera an enticement to listen to more
Isfåglarna (Halcyons) has some real musical and dramatic bull’s-eyes…Kortekangas’ style of composition has become somewhat more traditional in the past few decades. In composing an opera he specifically aims to make it melodious, and well succeeds. The result is pleasing even to the untrained ear and an enticement to listen to more. Keskipohjanmaa 28.10.
Olli Kortekangas: Isfåglarna (Halcyons), opera to Johan Bargum’s libretto
World premiere: Ostrobothnian Chamber Choir & Ensemble/Henriikka Teerikangas, sol. Minna-Leena Lahti, Olli Tikkanen, Hannu Ilmolahti, Niall Chorell etc., 25.10.2024 Kokkola, Finland
Wallroth & Daniel Nelson
I Am Monster
The creatures Lilith and Frankenstein’s monster turn against their creator and ask the question: You made me, Why do you hate me? Daniel Nelson’s music artfully backs up the text, which is conveyed throughout with dramatic intensity by Johanna Wallroth. It is awesome when her laser beam-like voice lights up the whole auditorium and bashes all the disparaging epithets with: “Yet, I remain Lilith.” Nerikes Allehanda 11.10
Daniel Nelson: I Am Monster
World premiere: Swedish CO/Daniel Raiskin, soloist Johanna Wallroth, sop, 10.10.2024 Örebro, Sweden
Fascinating repertoire
The Orchestral Suite No.2 is easily accessible, instantly attractive and illustrative … If the suite showed Leiviskä’s natural flair for instrumental colour then the Symphony No.2 demonstrates her skilled handling of material and form. The third movement Andante cantabile is intriguingly elusive – I particularly enjoyed the closing pages which combine a strikingly effective minimalist instrumentation with an emotionally ambiguous leave-taking – a solo violin gracefully evaporating into silence. …Repeated listenings reveal so much detail and interest which is where the recording and performance of this calibre really pays off. Music Web International 14.2.
Helvi Leiviskä: Sinfonia brevis, Orchestral Suite No.2, Symphony No.2
CD: Lahti SO/ Dalia Stasevska BIS-2701 (Orchestral Works Vol. 1)
Successful Hakola premiere
The music made me think partly of the jazz cafés of Paris and partly of Arvo Pärt-like repetitive meditation with broken chords. All in all, a valuable addition to the Finnish violin repertoire. Västra Nyland 19.11.
Kimmo Hakola: Violin Sonata Op. 117
World premiere: Kaija Saarikettu, vln, Kimmo Hakola, pf 15.11. 2024 Siuntio (Lux Musicae)
Mühlrad’s captivating RESIL I
It seems like a familiar Mühlradian landscape with floating sonorities, glissandi and quarter-tones. Billowing figurations build up to explosive outbursts with cascades of percussion and brass. Then there is a brief moment of surges before the equilibrium is broken. We are kept on our toes the whole time in a piece that is in continual motion. Nerikes Allehanda 11.10.
Jacob Mühlrad: RESIL I
World premiere: Swedish CO/Daniel Raiskin, 10.10.2024 Örebro, Sweden
A science-inspired work exploring the biosphere with dog whistles and delicate overtones –dreamlike, feverish, captivating, and unmistakably Mühlradian. Dagens Nyheter 29.11.
Jacob Mühlrad: RESIL I (version for symphony orchestra)
World premiere: Royal Stockholm PO/Aivis Greters, 28.11.2024 Stockholm, Sweden
Photo: Jukka Lehojärvi
Photo: Eija Tervo
Photo: Morgan Norman
Jacob Mühlrad
Johanna
REVIEWS
Heiniö’s
concerto for guitar and choir
The concerto took up the themes of war and peace, nature and the universe. The opening served as a tribute to Ukraine… In the Elegy movement, the low stretches on the E string swept the mood into mysterious, unpredictable waters…Towards the end, the character of the piece turned to a thirst for life and human sensitivity. Turun Sanomat 11.10.
Mikko Heiniö: Concerto for Guitar and Chamber Choir
Key Ensemble/Jutta Seppinen, sol. Patri Kleemola, gtr, 9.10.2024 Turku, Finland
Soundscapes of exceptional beauty
The emotional impact of this bewitchingly beautiful music is direct and at times devastating… These choral works draw listeners into a meditative state without ever letting them get too comfortable: the emotions invoked in the music are too cryptic, the vocal writing too full of sonic surprises New York Times 28.11.
Martinaitytė’s is a distinctive voice. These works go beyond words… This album presents a
power fully compelling, stunningly sung hour of immersive listening to a distinctive and important musical voice. BBC Music Magazine/Nov.2024
Žibuoklė Martinaitytė: Choral works (Aletheia, Ululations, The Blue of Distance, Chant des Voyelles)
CD: Latvian Radio Choir/Sigvards Klava Ondine ODE 1447-2 (“Aletheia”)
Damström’s Information holds you in its grasp
Under the leadership of Matthew Halls, the Tampere Philharmonic met the challenges of this impressive work with composure, delivering a powerful interpretation. Damström’s Information is a composition of exceptional content and artistry. It is technically and harmonically stunning, offering a vibrant and intense sense of drama. The piece is also intellectually rich, inviting the listener to contemplate both its musical and thematic substance. Kulttuuritoimitus 30.11.
As a sonic experience, Damström’s intense ten-minute piece immediately draws you in and holds you firmly in its grasp… The notes and the harmonies weave into a dense chaotic tapestry that shakes and unsettles. While it may evoke discomfort, it is undeniably powerful. Aamulehti 30.11.
Cecilia Damström: Information World premiere: Tampere PO/Matthew Halls, 29.11.2024 Tampere, Finland
PREMIERES
December 2024–March 2025
TIMO-JUHANI KYLLÖNEN
Julen sveper in Esbo Arbis Chamber Choir/Timo-Juhani Kyllönen, Kaisa Pulkkanen, pf 8.12. Espoo, Finland
MATTHEW WHITTALL
In the New Light of Spring – Concerto for Oboe and String Orchestra
Vaasa CO/Tomas Djupsjöbacka, sol. Anni Haapaniemi 13.12. Vaasa, Finland
ROLF MARTINSSON
Opening Sounds
Arrangement for wind orchestra by Joakim Unander
Royal Swedish Cavalery Band/Joakim Unander 30.1. Jönköping, Sweden
LARA POE
Kun usva helisee for orchestra
Finnish RSO/Nathanaël Iselin
2.2. Helsinki, Finland (Musica nova)
MARIE SAMUELSSON
The Love Trilogy (complete)
Malmö SO/Delyana Lazarova, sol. Ann-Kristin Jones, mz, Gustav Wetterbrant, cl 13.2. Malmö, Sweden
JYRKI LINJAMA
Prélude oublié for piano
Juho Pohjonen 20.2. New York, USA (Lincoln Center)
IIRO RANTALA - MINNA LINDGREN
Sanatorium Express (English version)
Australian Contemporary Opera Company 22.2. Melbourne, Australia
NEW CDs
JUKKA LINKOLA
Euphonium Concerto
Portuguese Air Force Band sol. Mauro Martins
Mario Dinis Marcues Recordings (“On My Way”)
ŽIBUOKLĖ MARTINAITYTĖ
Aletheia, Ululations, The Blue of Distance, Chant des Voyelles
Latvian Radio Choir/Sigvards Klava Ondine ODE 1447-2
PEHR HENRIK NORDGREN
Piano Quintet Op. 44, String Quartet No. 7
KALEVI AHO
A Letter to the Other Side (Kirje tuolle puolen)
Kokkola Quartet, Ostrobothian CO/ Juha Kangas
Alba ABCD 484
KARIN REHNQVIST
Silent Earth
Swedish Radio SO, Swedish Radio Choir/ Dima Slobodeniouk Footprints FR142
VELJO TORMIS
Raua needmine
CECILIA DAMSTRÖM
Sailing To Windward
JEAN SIBELIUS
Rakastava
Tampereen laulajat/Paavo Hyökki
Alba NCD 63 (”Elämän laulu”)
Photo: Marttiina
Sairanen
Photo: Ville Juurikkala
Patrik Kleemola and Mikko Heiniö
Cecilia Damström
NEW PUBLICATIONS
VOCAL & CHORAL
JOHANNA ALMARK
Tänään ja tuhat vuotta for descant choir & piano
Text: Heta Heiskanen (Fin)
FG 9790550119475
AVICII (ARR: HENRIK DAHLGREN)
Waiting for Love for female choir and piano with optional baritone
Text: AVICII (Eng) GE14632
ANNIKA BEIJER
Välkommen åter for mixed choir and cello/double bass ad.lib.
Text: August Strindberg, Annika Beijer (Swe) GE 14772
DAVID BERGIUS (IRISH TRAD. ARR)
Ge mig handen min vän for mixed choir
Text: Ingela Pling Forman (Swe) GE 14700
ANNA CEDERBERG-ORRETEG
Nya vägar/In vernali tempore for female choir
Text: Karin Boye (Swe), Piae Cantiones (Lat) GE 14572
Det finns en väg
10 psalms in arrangements for youth choir (SATB)
Texts in Swedish GE 14758
PER EKEDAHL
Agnus Dei for female choir
Text in Latin GE 14702
TED GÄRDESTAD
(ARR: CARIN ÅKESSON)
Äntligen på väg for female choir
Text: Kenneth Gärdestad (Swe) GE 14708
SVEN HAGVIL
Jag dricker dig liv for mixed choir
Text: Margareta Melin (Swe) GE 14604
ANNA-KARIN KLOCKAR
Marsch for mixed choir
Text: onomatopoetic text GE 14684
Lova Gud i himmelshöjd for female choir
Text: Jesper Svedberg (Swe) GE 14703
Nu är en dag framliden for female choir and piano
Text: Jesper Svedberg (Swe) GE 14793
TIMO-JUHANI KYLLÖNEN
Julen sveper in for mixed choir & piano
ROLF MARTINSSON
Ich denke Dein...
version for soprano and piano
Text: Goethe, Rilke, Eichendorff (Ger)
GE 13283
BODVAR D. MOE
Blessed Are the Poor for mixed choir
Text: from Matthew 5, 7:12 and 25 (Eng)
GE 14867
SARA PARKMAN, HAMPUS NORÉN (ARR: HENRIK DAHLGREN)
Vreden for mixed choir
text: Parkman/Norén (Swe)
GE 14689
Ing-Maries vals for mixed choir
Text: Sara Parkman/Jonas Gren (Swe)
GE 14690
JEAN SIBELIUS
Viisi joululaulua op. 1
(Five Christmas songs) for male choir
Texts: Z. Topelius, V. Joukahainen (Fin)
The songs are also available separately as pdf publications.
FG 9790550119567
ALAN SILVESTRI/GLEN BALLARD
(ARR: SIMON ÅKESSON)
When Christmas Comes to Town for male choir
As performed by Dad Harmony
Text: Silvestri/Ballard (Eng)
GE 14784
ARVID SVENUNGSSON
Du vatten for mixed choir
Text: Sara af Klintberg (Swe)
GE 14685
JENNAH VAINIO
For Such a Time as This
Three songs for male choir with percussion
Text: Jennah Vainio (Eng)
FG 9790550119468
MATTHEW WHITTALL
Songs of Travel for mixed choir
Text: Robert Louis Stevenson (Eng)
The songs of Whittall’s large-scale choral cycle are also available separately as pdf publications.
1. Home no more home - 2. In the highlands3. The infinite shining heavens4. Give me the sun – 5. Evensong.
FG 9790550117808
CHAMBER & INSTRUMENTAL
TARU AARNIO
Colourstrings Cello ABC: Book A – Opettajan ja vanhempien opas (Guide for Teachers and Parents, in Finnish) FG 9790550117259
MATS LARSSON GOTHE
Tredingar (Ridings) for brass sextet
GE 14363 (score), GE 14364 (parts)
ROLF MARTINSSON
Fairy Dances for oboe, cello and harp GE 14651
ALBERT SCHNELZER
Oboe Sonata – The Puppeteer for oboe and piano GE 14762
JEAN SIBELIUS
String Trio in G Minor
Transcription for string orchestra by Dan Flanagan FG 9790550119499 (score and parts 33221)
LOTTA WENNÄKOSKI
Mellan natt och regn (Between Night and Rain) for guitar and string quartet FG 9790550119529 (score & parts)
Text: Timo-Juhani Kyllönen (Swe)
FG 9790550119574
MATS LARSSON GOTHE
Men du kom inte
(from the opera ’Löftet/The Promise’) for mixed choir
Text: Else Lasker-Schüler freely adapted by Susanne Marko (Swe) GE 14705
ZIBUOKLĖ MARTINAITYTĖ
Ululations for mixed choir (16 voices)
Text: wordless FG 9790550119482
Två psalmer (Two Psalms) for mixed choir
Text: Psalms (Swe)
1. Du kröner året - 2. Sion, prisa din Gud
FG 9790550119505
love is a place
Three songs after E. E. Cummings for mixed choir
Text: E. E. Cummings (Eng)
1. somewhere i have never travelled - 2. love is a place - 3. i carry your heart FG 9790550119512
For further information contact us at:
ORCHESTRA
TOBIAS BROSTRÖM
Rubedo
GE 14368 (score), GE 14370 (study score)
The Garden of Earthly Delights GE 14608 (score), GE 14610 (study score)
DANIEL NELSON
The Ghost Machine Treatise for accordeon and string orchestra
GE 14658 (score), GE 14659 (solo part), GE 14660 (study score)
MATTHEW PETERSON
Vagabond for chamber orchestra GE 14692 (score), GE 14694 (study score)
KARIN REHNQVIST
Arktis Arktis! for orchestra GE 14780 (score) GE 14782 (study score)
HARRI WESSMAN
Concertino for trumpet and string orchestra “Mirrors” (Peilejä) FG 9790550119536 (solo part & piano reduction)
Gehrmans Musikförlag AB
Box 42026, SE-126 12 Stockholm, Sweden
Tel. +46 8 610 06 00
info@gehrmans.se
Web shop: www.gehrmans.se
Hire: hire@gehrmans.se
Sales: order@gehrmans.se
Fennica Gehrman Oy Ab
Fredrikinkatu 61 A 22, FI-00100 Helsinki, Finland
Tel. +358 10 3871 220
info@fennicagehrman.fi
Web shop: www.fennicagehrman.fi
Hire: hire@fennicagehrman.fi
Sales: customerservice@storia.fi
Several publications by Fennica Gehrman are also available as PDF editions or eBooks in our web shop.
