Sibelius Singing Competition 2015

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The Third International Sibelius Singing Competition is to be held in Järvenpää on 19th–25th April 2015. It is open to singers aged 35 or less from countries around the Baltic Sea and there is one single category for men and women. The competitors will sing solo songs by Sibelius and other Lieder with piano accompaniment. The competition also offers a chance to hear some less frequently performed Sibelius songs: the competitors have chosen no fewer than 61 of his songs from 16 different opus groups.

A panel appointed by the Competition Committee has selected 26 singers for the competition: 20 Finns, two Poles, two Estonians, one Swede and one Dane. The official pianists are Kristian Attila, Hans-Otto Ehrström, Tuula Hällström and Ilmari Räikkönen. The five members of the Jury are pianist Gustav Djupsjöbacka, mezzo-soprano Monica Groop, Danish soprano Inger Dam-Jensen, German baritone Andreas Schmidt and Swedish baritone Olle Persson.

First prize is worth €12,000, second prize €6,000 and third prize €3,000. The winner will be invited to appear with the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra during the 2015/2016 season, and a special prize will be awarded in the form of a Lied recital at the Lahti Sibelius Festival on 6th September 2015.

Yle Radio 1 will be broadcasting the finals of the competition live on Saturday 25th April. The finals will also be streamed live at www.yle.fi/klassinen. Video recordings of the preliminary round and semi-finals will be posted on the competition website during the competition week.

Previous International Sibelius Singing Competitions have been held in 2007 and 2011. The winner of the 2007 competition was mezzo-soprano Annastiina Tahkola, and that of the 2011 competition soprano Hedvig Paulig. The Sibelius Singing Competition is organised by the Järvenpää Sibelius Weeks in partnership with the City of Järvenpää and the Sibelius Academy.

Third International Sibelius Singing Competition at the Järvenpää Hall
Opening ceremony and draw for the order of performance in the Juhani Aho Hall at 19.00 on Sunday 19th April
Preliminary round in the Sibelius Hall at 16.00 and 19.00 on Monday–Wednesday 20th–22nd April
Semi-finals in the Sibelius Hall at 17.00 and 19.00 on Thursday–Friday 23rd–24th April
Finals in the Sibelius Hall at 19.00 on Saturday 25th April
Tickets from Lippupiste outlets

Further information:
Terhi Luukkonen, Secretary General
Tel. +358-40-710 4368
terhi.luukkonen@uniarts.fi
www.sibeliussinging.fi

Source: Press release, 9th April 2015, Third International Sibelius Singing Competition

Anglo-Finnish Society Spring Concert

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In the presence of H.E. the Ambassador of Finland and Mrs Huhtaniemi
Sunday 26th April 2015, at 4 pm
St Mark’s Church, Hamilton Terrace, London NW8 9UT

Laura Mikkola, piano · Tuomas Ylinen, cello

Programme:
Einojuhani Rautavaara: Cantus Arcticus, Concerto for Birds and Orchestra
Piano arrangement by Peter Lönnqvist
Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonata No. 3 in A major for Cello and Piano, Op. 69
Jean Sibelius: Malinconia, Op. 20
Johannes Brahms: Sonata in E minor for Cello and Piano, Op. 38

Tickets
Advance purchase internet price: £10 for adults, £5 for children under 18 and full-time students under 25.
Tickets can be purchased at https://eventbrite.co.uk/event/16088486095. Booking fee applies.
Cash on the door: £12 for adults, £5 for children under 18 and full-time students under 25.
www.anglofinnishsociety.org.uk

With the kind support of Finland Society (Suomi-Seura) and the Embassy of Finland

Click here for more information

Sibelius on original instruments

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Photo: © Sibelius One
Photo: © Sibelius One

 

A CD of Sibelius’s works for violin and piano and songs has been recorded at his home, Ainola, using the composer’s own violin and his own Steinway piano.

The recording features Satu Jalas (Sibelius’s granddaughter), violin, Lilli Paasikivi, soprano, and Folke Gräsbeck, piano.

The programme features a generous selection of Sibelius’s most popular works in these genres including the Romance in F major and Rondino for violin and piano, and songs such as Våren flyktar hastigt, Svarta rosor and Flickan kom ifrån sin älsklings möte.

The CD will be released by the Ainola Foundation in June 2015. Further information will be published later.

Folke Gråsbeck has also recently recorded a Sibelius solo piano CD on the Ainola Steinway for BIS Records (BIS-2132).

Concert at the Finnish Ambassador’s Residence (update)

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This event is now sold out

Fenella Humphreys (photo: © Ian Stark) / Sam Armstrong (photo: © Balazs Borocz/Pilvax Studio)
Fenella Humphreys (photo: © Ian Stark) / Sam Armstrong (photo: © Balazs Borocz/Pilvax Studio)

The  all-Sibelius concert at the Finnish Ambassador’s Residence in London on Wednesday 10th June 2015 at 6.30 pm, given by Fenella Humphreys, violin, Anton Kukkonen, cello, and Sam Armstrong, piano, is now sold out. (In fact, there is a waiting list for tickets!)

The concert is arranged by Sibelius One with the generous support and assistance of the Finnish Embassy in London.

Drinks and canapés will be served.

Tickets cost £12 (concessions and Sibelius One members: £8). If you have ordered tickets but not yet sent payment, please note that payment can be made to Sibelius One either
– by internet banking (sort code 54-10-27, account number 13655558) or
– by cheque payable to Sibelius One (send to: 6 Chichester Drive West, Saltdean, Brighton BN2 8SH)
As payment reference please use your name and the word ‘tickets’.
Tickets cannot be issued until payment is received. Tickets will be personalized so please make sure to provide the names and postal address of all those who will attend.

The address of the Finnish Ambassador’s Residence is 14 Kensington Palace Gardens,
London W8 4QP

A Window to the Finnish Mind – 26th March 2015

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Don’t miss the concert by the Aeon Duo (Essi Kiiski, violin and Eduardo Andrade) at the Finnish Church in London on Thursday 26th March 2015 at 7 pm. The concert focuses on Sibelius’s music for violin for piano, plus the world première of a work inspired by Sibelius composed by Eduardo Andrade. It is part of the official Sibelius 150 schedule of events and will be an exciting and innovative combination of music, photography and taste sensations.

Sibelius One members receive concessionary prices for tickets to this concert. To obtain the promotional code, click here.

The pieces in the concert are going to be performed alongside the seven winning pictures in the Photography Competition ‘The Essence of Finland’. The winners of the competition, whose photographs will be projected during the concert, are:
Janica Candolin – UK (217 votes)
Jenna Mäkinen – UK (154 votes)
Heidi Jakkula – Finland (91 votes)
Leon Chia
Henna Kylmälä
Eeva Williamson
Terhi Manuel-Garner

 

Two Choral Pieces Rediscovered

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The YL Male Voice Choir, conducted by Pasi Hyökki, will give the first performances of two newly discovered a cappella choral pieces by Sibelius on 11th April 2015 at the Helsinki Music Centre.

The pieces are a previously unknown, longer version of Terve, kuu (Hail, Moon), composed for the Suomen Laulu choir in 1901, and a complete but unpublished setting of Aleksis Kivi’s Suomenmaa from around 1898. A melody from the unpublished Suomenmaa was used as the last theme of Sandels, Op. 28.

The parts for Terve, kuu, with words from the Kalevala, were copied out before its première but after the copies were ready Sibelius decided to revise and shorten the piece. These parts, recently rediscovered by the Sibelius scholar Sakari Ylivuori, are the only source of the original, longer version. The parts had been in the possession of Mikko Jussi Näri, a sheep farmer.

The concert will also include the rarely heard male-choir version of Ej med klagan, written for the funeral of the painter Albert Edelfelt in 1905.

Other composers represented in the concert are Einojuhani Rautavaara, Jouni Kaipainen, Olli Kortekangas, Mikko Sidoroff and Juuso Vanonen.

Concert details and tickets: click here (in Finnish)

Sources:
HBL.fi
Helsingin Sanomat

Concert at the Finnish Ambassador’s Residence

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Fenella Humphreys (photo: © Ian Stark) / Sam Armstrong (photo: © Balazs Borocz/Pilvax Studio)
Fenella Humphreys (photo: © Ian Stark) / Sam Armstrong (photo: © Balazs Borocz/Pilvax Studio)

There will be an all-Sibelius concert at the Finnish Ambassador’s Residence in London on Wednesday 10th June 2015 at 6.30 pm, given by Fenella Humphreys, violin, Anton Kukkonen, cello, and Sam Armstrong, piano.

The theme of the concert is ‘Sibelius and Family’, and the event takes place on the composer’s 123rd wedding anniversary.

Aino and Jean Sibelius (photo: © Santeri Levas / Finnish Museum of Photography)
Aino and Jean Sibelius (photo: © Santeri Levas / Finnish Museum of Photography)

The programme will include works for violin and piano: the Four Pieces, Op. 78 (including the famous F major Romance), E major Sonatina and Four Pieces, Op. 115. Cello pieces will include Malinconia, and all three performers will come together to end the concert with La pompeuse Marche d’Asis. Expect also some intriguing rarities and several UK premières.

The concert is arranged by Sibelius One with the generous support and assistance of the Finnish Embassy in London.

Drinks and canapés will be served.

Tickets cost £12 (concessions and Sibelius One members: £8) and can be ordered from gm@sibeliusone.com
Tickets will be personalized so please include the names and postal address of all those who will attend.
Payment can be made to Sibelius One either
– by internet banking (sort code 54-10-27, account number 13655558)
– by cheque payable to Sibelius One (send to: 6 Chichester Drive West, Saltdean, Brighton BN2 8SH)
As payment reference please use your name and the word ‘tickets’.

The address of the Finnish Ambassador’s Residence is 14 Kensington Palace Gardens, London W8 4QP

 

 

Alternative Sibelius

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The Alternative Sibelius series was launched at en event hosted by the Finnish Ambassador, Pekka Huhtaniemi, at his London residence on Friday 13th March 2015. Musicians who performed included Viola Uotila (kantele), Lauri Porra (electric bass), Yona (vocals) and the Jani Pensola Houseband, with Erkki Korhonen, director of the Sibelius Birth Town Foundation .

The Alternative Sibelius events in both England and Finland provide new perspectives on the music of this loved composer in his 150th anniversary year. In addition to music itself, this concert series emphasizes the importance of audience development and cooperates with such distinguished organizations as LSO Discovery, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra and the Finnish Church in London.

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Erkki Korhonen presents the book ‘My Sibelius’ to Finnish Ambassador Pekka Huhtaniemi at the launch of the Alternative Sibelius series
For more information click here.

Source: ‘Alternative Sibelius’ information leaflet

Why do we like Sibelius?

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We are currently preparing a survey that will examine why we respond as we do to the music of Sibelius.

To make our survey as representative as possible we invite all visitors to the Sibelius One website to complete and submit the short response form below, before 30th April 2015.

Answers don’t have to be scholarly or technical – just spontaneous!

The results of the survey will form the basis of an article to be published in the summer, and the best indivudual comments will be included – anonymously if you wish.

In particular we are keen to know how attitudes to Sibelius vary in different countries, so please be sure to tell us which country you live in.

When you have filled in the form, press the ‘Send Now!’ button.

Thank you for your help and we look forward to sharing the results with you!

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Photo Exhibition at Helsinki Airport

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Finavia has opened a unique photography exhibition, ‘Sibelius & Images of Finland’ inspired by Sibelius 150th anniversary, at the airport art gallery.

The exhibition presents rare photographs of Sibelius at his home, Ainola, as well as the documentary film ‘Jean Sibelius at home’.

Ville Haapasaari, airport director, says that Finavia wanted to recognise the anniversary of the birth of the Finnish master composer in an impressive manner.  ‘For many international passengers, Helsinki Airport is the first and sometimes only point of contact with our country. The airport could even be called the calling card of Finland.  These kinds of exhibitions are a good way of highlighting Finnish culture and art to an international audience’, Haapasaari said  at the inauguration of the exhibition.

Unique photographs of Finland and Helsinki from 1920s up to 1960s
The exhibition at the airport presents the variety of the output and the significant life work of three Finnish artists: Heikki Aho, Björn Soldan and Claire Aho. Sibelius photos are part of a larger exhibition with different five themed exhibitions totalling 230 photos. In addition to the Sibelius exhibition, Aho and Soldan’s themed exhibitions ‘Views of Helsinki in the 1930s’ and vintage art photographs from Centre Pompidou’s ‘The light of the North’ collection are exhibited.

Claire Aho’s photos take the viewers to Helsinki in 1968, and the fashion, advertisement and magazine photos in the ‘Studio Works’ themed exhibition recall the nostalgic mood of the 1950s.

Aho and Soldan’s output has opened new perspectives on Finnish everyday life, history and the industrialisation of  society; they have affected the image we have of the modern Finland. Heikki Aho’s daughter Claire Aho started as a documentary film-maker in the late 1940s. Claire Aho is also a pioneer of Finnish colour photography.

‘Sibelius & Images of Finland’ will be open until the end of 2015. Admission is free 24/7 to all passengers departing or arriving via the gate area 32–38.

For additional information, please contact:
Finavia Corp, Media Desk tel. +358 20 7082002, comms@finavia.fi
The exhibition brochure can be downloaded at Finavia’s web-site:
Home page of Aho & Soldan
Home page of Claire Aho

Source: Finavia Press Release, 3.3.2015