The Finnish National Ballet commissioned a new work from the prize-winning film music composer Tuomas Kantelinen for its 90^th anniversary in 2012. The resulting Christmas ballet, Lumikuningatar (The Snow Queen) to the fairy tale by H. C. Andersen was a huge success with its melodic and beautiful music. The ballet suite has now been released on CD by record company Ondine (ODE 1231-2), played by the Finnish National Opera Orchestra and the composer himself as conductor.

Alba Records (ABCD 359) has released a recording of Pehr Henrik Nordgren’s (1944-2008) Concerto for clarinet, folk instruments and small orchestra with clarinetist Christoffer Sundqvist, kantele player Anna-Karin Korhonen, jouhikko player Ilkka Heinonen and accordionist Markku Lepistö. The work, written back in 1970, uses folk melodies collected by the famed Finnish folk music scholar A. O. Väisänen and published in 1928. The CD includes also Nordgren’s Symphony No. 1 (1974). The world premiere recordings are played by Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Juha Kangas – the jouhikko player of the premiere of Nordgren’s concerto.

Several recordings of Baroque music have also come out in the recent months. Ondine has released Christoph Graupner’s Orchestral Suites with Finnish Baroque Orchestra and Sirkka-Liisa Kaakinen-Pilch (ODE 1220-2). Kaakinen-Pilch has also released a solo recording of J. S. Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for violin (ODE 1241-2D).

Helsinki Baroque Orchestra has recorded J. S. Bach’s Harpsichord Concertos vol. 2 for German record label AEOLUS. The recording includes three concertos and a Fantasy in c minor, as well as W. F. Bach’s Concerto in G major (Fk 40). The soloist and conductor is the orchcestra’s leader Aapo Häkkinen.  The first volume of the series already evoked praising reviews from several international music critics.

Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra has recorded György Ligeti’s music with its new Chief Conductor Hannu Lintu and violinist Benjamin Schmid (ODE 1213-2). On another recent CD, Lintu is conducting his previous orchestra Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra with a programme of George Enescu (ODE 1197-2). Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra has recorded music by Dmitri Shostakovich with Vladimir Ashkenazy (ODE 1225-2).

London-based label Toccata Classics has continued its collection of historical Finnish music with a CD of Ernst Mielck’s (1877-1899) works (TOCC 0174). Mielck died as he was only 21 years, but despite the short life managed to write an impressive oeuvre in the post-Schumann Romantic tradition.

Notable recordings of Finnish works include also Jaakko Kuusisto’s Leika and Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, recorded by Elina Vähälä, Lahti Symphony Orchestra and Jaakko Kuusisto for the Swedish BIS records (BIS-2020).

Ondine
Alba Records
Harpsichord Concertos vol. 2 on AEOLUS
Mielck CD on Toccata Classics
The Red Violin – concertos by Corigliano & Kuusisto on BIS