Lotta Wennäkoski at 50 Focus on Carl Unander-Scharin
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NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS 4/2019 NEWSLETTER FROM GEHRMANS MUSIKFÖRLAG & FENNICA GEHRMAN Lotta Wennäkoski at 50 Focus on Carl Unander-Scharin NEWS Fennica takes over Warner’s Rautavaara’s Vigiliagilia light catalogue Einojuhani Rautavaarara’s’s All-Night Vigil (Vigilia)a) As of 1 January 2020, Fennica Gehrman will Ondine Records Photo: Photo: Elin, Model House Elin, Photo: be acting as agent for the orchestral material is a new release on the BIBISS of Warner/Chappell Music Finland. Under label. Nils Schweckendiekdiek the new agreement, nearly 300 works, mainly conducts the Helsinki light-orchestra arrangements, will from then on- Chamber Choir, and wards be distributed by Fennica. Th e bulk will the soloists are Niall consist of works by George de Godzinsky, Rau- Chorell, tenor and no Lehtinen, Toivo Kärki and Unto Mononen, Tuukka Haapaniemi, among others. Many of them are in versions bass. made by diff erent arrangers. In 1971-72 Rau- tavaara composed a Finnish Orthodox church service similar to that of Rach- Photo: Camilla Svensk Camilla Photo: maninov, comprising Vespers as well as Matins. He then reshaped the music into what we now Tebogo Monnakgotla know as Vigilia, Monnakgotla’s Un clin d’oeil a concert version forming a musical entity. Th e 70-minute work Tebogo Monnakgotla’s acclaimed song cycle Albert Schnelzer is in 34 sections and features prominent parts Un Clin d’oeil to poems by the Madagascan poet for a bass and a tenor soloist. Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo, will be heard again in spring 2020. Baritone Luthando Qave will be Swedish MPA Award to Schnelzer soloist with the Norrköping Symphony under Albert Schnelzer has been awarded the Swed- Heino Kaski piano album Marc Soustrot on 29 February, and Anja Bihl- ish Music Publishers’ Prize 2019 for his Piano Fennica Gehrman has published a treasure maier will lead the Nordic Chamber Orchestra Concerto – Th is is Your Kingdom . “Th is is trove for piano enthusiasts: an album of 32 pi- in a performance on 2 April with Fredrik Zet- Schnelzer’s third orchestral work with the ambi- ano pieces by Finnish composer Heino Kaski terström as soloist. tion to depict life outside the centre and outside (1885–1957). One of them, in particular – Yö the glare of the fl oodlights. Th e piece alternates meren rannalla (Night by the Sea) – is a lasting Allan Pettersson’s Six Songs stirring rhythms with fragile simplicity; it leaves favourite with pianists. Also in the collection no one unmoved”, says the jury. Th e piano con- are many more lyrical miniatures with beautiful Staff an Storm has arranged Allan Pettersson’s certo was commissioned by the Swedish RSO arching melodies. Janne Mertanen has released Six Songs/Sechs Lieder for baritone, strings and for the American pianist Conrad Tao and was a CD of Kaski’s piano pieces, and all the works harp . Th e new arrangement will shortly be premiered in Stockholm on 14 March 2019. on the disc are included in this collection. published by Gehrmans, and has already been recorded by baritone Jakob Högström and Mu- sica Vitae under Daniel Hansson, and released on CD by the CPO label (CPO 999.286-2). Isabelle van Keulen plays Högberg Lund Nikolaj Photo: In the spring of 2020 Isabelle van Keulen NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS 4/2019 will give four performances of Fredrik Hög- NEWSLETTER FROM GEHRMANS MUSIKFÖRLAG & FENNICA GEHRMAN berg’s Absent Illusions – A Hunt for the Eluded Sound samples , video clips Muses. Joseph Bastian will conduct the Nürn- and other material are available at berger Symphoniker in a performance on 19 www.gehrmans.se/highlights January. Eivind Gullberg Jensen will lead the Odense Symphony Orchestra in the Danish Cover photo: LoƩ a Wennäkoski (Maarit Kytöharju) premiere on 23 January, and fi nally the Norr- köping Symphony will give two performances Editors: Henna Salmela and Kristina Fryklöf on 7 and 8 May under the direction of Joshua Translations: Susan Sinisalo and Robert Carroll Weilerstein. Absent Illusions is a multimedia Design: Tenhelp Oy/Tenho Järvinen concerto for violin/viola and orchestra with ISSN 2000-2742 (Print), ISSN 2000-2750 (Online) fi lm, dedicated to the nine Muses, and was pre- Printed in Sweden by TMG Sthlm, Bromma 2019 miered by Isabelle van Keulen and the Düssel- dorfer Symphoniker in 2018. HIGHLIGHTS 4/2019 Kimmo Hakola’s Fidl Kimmo Hakola’s Fidl Op. 99 for vi- PREMIERES olin and orchestra was the commis- Vessiez Bruno Photo: sioned work for the Queen Elisa- Spring 2020 beth Competition 2019. Fidl is the JONAS VALFRIDSSON A Spark in the Deep Dark Yiddish word for a violin – Hakola’s Dalasinfoniettan/Claire Levacher fi rst instrument. isTh 17-minute 1.2. Falun, Sweden (Composer in Residence) John Bauer Overture work radiates light and humour Dalasinfoniettan/Tobias Ringborg and combines everything Hakola 28.2. Orsa, Sweden (Composer in Residence) always dreamt of when imagining KALEVI AHO Solo XV for marimba music for the violin, its textural Martin Grubinger and expressive potential. In the fi - 9.2. Wien, Austria nal round of the competition the Quartet for Accordion and String Trio candidates performed a concerto of Janne Rättyä, Zillacus Trio their choice and Hakola’s work, ac- 6.4. Stockholm, Sweden Stella Chen was companied by the Belgian National MIKKO HEINIÖ awarded 1st prize Syvyyden yllä tuuli (Wind above Orchestra under Hugh Wolff (See: at the Queen the Depths) Reviews). Elisabeth Violin Turku PO, Turku University Choir/Tomas Competition. Djupsjöbacka, sol. Ville Rusanen, baritone 28.2. Turku, Finland Sonata for Guitar Patrik Kleemola 15.3. Boulder, USA Wessman and Turriago on CD Täällä, kaikkialla (Here, Everywhere) for male choir Pilfi nk has released a disc of solo and chamber works for Polytech Choir/Saara Aittakumpu the guitar by Harri Wessman. Th e performers are Matti 17.4. Helsinki, Finland Photo: Nea Ilmevalta Photo: Photo: Liisa Wessman Liisa Photo: Riutamaa and Patrick Vena, guitar, Eva Trygg, fl ute and MATTHEW WHITTALL where rain ends... ...begins Antti Leinonen, accordion. the sky A disc of the complete works for solo piano by Tuo - KAAÅS Piano Trio mas Turriago was released on 3 December. Included are 1.3. Helsinki, Finland These Things Remain Somber and Jitters , published by Fennica Gehrman as Winnipeg SO, Toonkunstkoor Amsterdam/ Daniel Raiskin, sol. Henk Neven, baritone sheet music. Pilfi nk is also planning a CD of Turriago’s 24.4. Winnipeg, Canada four chamber sonatas: for fl ute, alto sax, French horn and SVENDAVID SANDSTRÖM tuba. Trombone Concerto Swedish Radio SO/Daniel Harding, sol. Håkan Björkman New choral works by Jan Yngwe and 26.3. Stockholm, Sweden KARIN REHNQVIST Olle Lindberg Silent Earth Gehrmans is publishing Jan Yngwe’s In State of Emergency Netherlands Radio PO & Choir/ Dima Slobodeniouk for mixed choir and percussion. It was written for the Vo- 18.4. Amsterdam, Netherlands cal Art Ensemble and the Rhythm Art Duo and was pre- BENJAMIN STAERN miered during the Point Music Festival at the Gothenburg Pippi Longstocking anniversary work for orchestra Concert Hall in May. Th e piece is based on a poem by the Swedish Radio SO/Ariane Matiakh Burundian poet Ketty Nivyabandi, who also founded the 22.4. Stockholm Sweden Women’s Movement for Peace and Security, and led the SVENDAVID SANDSTRÖM fi rst demonstration of women in Burundy. Te Deum Philharmonischer Chor Berlin/Uppsala Olle Lindberg’s A Requiem for the Living had its premiere Academic Chamber Choir/Brandenburgisches Staatsorchester Frankfurt/Stefan Parkman, sol. Benjamin Staern on 2 November in Stockholm. Subtitled “A Journey To- Karin Dahlberg, soprano, Olle Persson, baritone wards Eternal Light”, the piece shows infl uences from clas- 10.5. Berlin, Germany Benjamin Staern news sical music, jazz, folk music and some hard rock too. Scored KIMMO HAKOLA Benjamin Staern’s Wave Movements will receive its for two soloists, mixed choir, brass quintet, percussion, Work for orchestra (Helsinki Variations) North American premiere on 31 January at the Win- piano and strings, it was premiered by the Adolf Fredrik Helsinki PO/Susanna Mälkki nipeg New Music Festival, with Daniel Raiskin con- Chamber Choir, conductor Christoff er Holgersson, Ag- 15.5. Helsinki, Finland ducting the Winnipeg Symphony. Staern is presently nes Lindberg, Staff an Liljas, the Linnaeus Quintet, et al. working on a commission from the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, a work inspired by “Pippi Long- stocking” – next year will be the 75th anniversary of Kortekangas & the Naantali Astrid Lindgren’s famous children’s book character. Music Festival Staern will depict the strong and fearless Pippi who Henna SalmelaPhoto: Th e Naantali Music Festival has commissioned a new stands up for herself and, not least, for others. He is work for cello and chamber ensemble from Olli Korte- dedicating the piece to climate activist Greta Th un- kangas for inclusion in the summer 2021 repertoire. Th e berg. Th e orchestral work will be premiered on 22 April soloist will be Arto Noras. Th e premiere of the Double in Berwaldhallen in Stockholm under the direction of Concerto commissioned earlier by the festival has also Ariane Matiakh. been scheduled for 2021. Th e soloists in that work will be Osmo Vänskä, clarinet and Erin Keefe, violin. HIGHLIGHTS 4/2019 Exposed to reality Lotta Wennäkoski, who will be 50 in February 2020, is one of today’s most cel- ebrated Finnish composers. In September, the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra premiered her orchestral “Om fotspår och ljus” (Of Footprints and Light), which had as its point of departure an opera by the composer Ida Moberg (1859–1947). Wennäkoski’s choice of topic can also be seen as a cultural-political statement. Lotta Wennäkoski here refl ects on gender equality in the Finnish musical establishment. quality in the world of music has been those in Finland; over there, the striving towards the subject of sometimes quite heat- a pluralist society seems nowadays to be taken for ed debate in Finland this autumn.