An afternoon of Nordic chamber treats at Kangasala Classic

Soprano Meeri Pulakka and accordionist Janne Valkeajoki in performance at Sahalahti Church on Saturday. © Kangasala Classic Assembled at Sahalahti Church on Saturday afternoon, the musicians of Kangasala Classic sounded out a remarkably well-devised programme of eight musical works from seven Nordic composers – six Finns and one Dane – bound together into seamless sonic...

Captivating choral tapestries with Tampere Cappella at Kangasala Classic

Tampere Cappella joined by Rebecca Roozeman and Anna Husgafvel, violins, Saara Kurki, viola, Lauri Kankkunen, cello, and Juha Kleemola, double bass, performing Caroline Shaw under Markus Yil-Jokipii's direction. © Ville Hautakangas The second evening concert of the Kangasala Classic summer festival focused on (mostly) contemporary choral music, sung with committed artistry by Tampere Cappella under...

Sibelius revelations with Ilya Gringolts, FiBO and Tomas Djupsjöbacka at Verkatehdas

Finnish Baroque Orchestra, conductor Tomas Djupsjöbacka and violinist Ilya Gringolts onstage at Verkatehdas on Friday evening. © Jari Kallio Continuing their discoveries into the realm of the Jean Sibelius oeuvre, the Finnish Baroque Orchestra and conductor Tomas Djupsjöbacka, joined by violinist Ilya Gringolts, unveiled their latest installment at Verkatehdas, Hämeenlinna on Friday, presenting the audience...

Touring with Salonen and Sibelius – Christoffer Sundqvist, the FRSO and Nicholas Collon in Sastamala

Christoffer Sundqvist, the Finnish Radio Symphony and Nicholas Collon rehearsing Esa-Pekka Salonen's clarinet concerto kínēma (2021) at Vexve Arena on Monday. © Markku Uusitalo Concluding their Finnish tour in Sastamala on Monday, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chief Conductor Nicholas Collon took the house with a splendid programme of Esa-Pekka Salonen and Jean Sibelius, featuring...

Performances of intensity and merit – Hannu Lintu debuts with Berliner Philharmoniker

Hannu Lintu conducting Sibelius with the Berliner Philharmoniker on Thursday © Monika Rittershaus The very air of the main hall of the Berlin Philharmonie buzzed with excitement ahead of this week's performances by the Berliner Philharmoniker. Teaming up for the very first time with Hannu Lintu for an exquisite 20th and 21st century programme heard on...

San Francisco Symphony and Salonen took Disney Hall with Adams and Sibelius

Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting John Adams's Naive and Sentimental Music (1998-99) with the San Francisco Symphony at Walt Disney Concert Hall. © Timothy Norris / Walt Disney Concert Hall In the light of recent news from San Francisco, Friday evening’s guest performance by the San Francisco Symphony and their (regrettably) outgoing Music Director Esa-Pekka...

An evening of refined intensity – Helsinki Philharmonic performs Anna Clyne and Sibelius with Inbal Segev and Thomas Dausgaard

Inbal Segev and the Helsinki Philharmonic, conducted by Thomas Dausgaard, rehearsing Anna Clyne's DANCE (2019) for cello and orchestra at the Helsinki Music Centre on Thursday. © Jari Kallio Inaugurated with the world premiere of her new violin concerto Time and Tides (2023) for Pekka Kuusisto in September, Anna Clyne’s residency with the Helsinki Philharmonic...

Thomas Adès and Pekka Kuusisto join Gewandhausorchester on a resplendent musical journey

Pekka Kuusisto and Gewandhausorchester performing Thomas Adès's Märchentänze (2020/2021) under the composer. © Tom Thiele The second installment in Thomas Adès’s two-year tenure as Gewandhauskomponist presented the Leipzig audiences with a gorgeously devised orchestral programme conducted by the composer and joined by Pekka Kuusisto on violin. Bookended by two resoundingly festive works, Adès’s Tower for...

The Creation according to Adès and Sibelius with Kirill Gerstein, Sarah Wegener, the Gewandhausorchester and Andris Nelsons

Gewandhausorchester in performance with Chief Conductor Andris Nelsons. © Gert Mothes Marking the onset of Thomas Adès’s two-year tenure as Gewandhauskomponist, the renowned Leipzig-based ensemble, together with Chief Conductor Andris Nelsons and pianist Kirill Gerstein, opened their concerts this week with the composer’s piano-concerto-but-name In Seven Days (2008), unraveling its sonorous vistas of the Creation...

Ravishing Berlioz and fiery Sibelius with Orchestre de Paris, Klaus Mäkelä and Janine Jansen at Elbphilharmonie

Violinist Janine Jansen, Orchestre de Paris and Music Director Klaus Mäkelä performing Sibelius at Elbphilharmonie on Saturday. © Sören L. Schirmer On tour, the Orchestre de Paris and their Music Director Klaus Mäkelä arrived at Elbphilharmonie on Saturday for two eagerly-awaited performances in the hall’s celebrated acoustics. Their first evening featured an intrguing coupling of...