Anssi

The rules of the game were clear when the credits for the soundtrack of Aki Kaurismäki's debut film Crime and Punishment gave the names Franz Schubert, Dmitri Shostakovich, Olavi Virta, the Renegades, Harri Marstio and Billie Holiday. Dostoevskian to say the least! Added to these as Kaurismaki’s career progressed were Tchaikovsky (the Pathetique Symphony a dozen or so times!), Shostakovich, Chuck Berry, the great Estonian Georg Ots, rhythm & blues, Finnish rock’n’roll (Melrose, with Tokela in the vocal lead), Jussi Bjorling, and Toshitake Shinohara - the Japanese composer of a host of beautiful scores now settled permanently in Karkkila, home of Kaurismäki himself. Not all are familiar to a non-Finnish audience. Yet Finn and foreigner, familiar and unfamiliar are as such one seamless entity, their associations equally fascinating. The director himself says he grabs armfuls of discs off his shelf at home before setting off for the editing room.

Jennifer Koh, a brilliant violinist (The New Yorker) who performs with conviction, ferocity, and an irresistible sense of play (Washington Post), showcases works by Kaija Saariaho, the visionary and influential Finnish composer with whom Koh has closely collaborated and feels a deep personal bond. The album offers the world-premiere recording of Saariahos Light and Matter for violin, cello, and piano, inspired by sunlit colors and shadows in a city park outside the composers window. Also receiving its first recording is the violin and cello version of Aure, meaning a gentle breeze, created for and dedicated to Koh and cellist Anssi Karttunen, another champion of Saariahos music.

Known for her colourful orchestration, Saariaho’s impressive variety of sound is apparent in all of the works included here. The trios are composed for different combinations of instruments, each of them demonstrating their individual colours.