Jan Söderblom leads our musicians to a time when the future Finnish national anthem “Our Land” was being performed for the first time. All of this evening’s pieces were composed around the tumultuous year of 1848, when nationalist and liberal uprisings erupted across Europe. Listen to the patriotic romance, the unyielding Nordic character and the Central Europeanness rooted also in us.
Violinist Isabelle Faust has a passion for diving deep into the historical origins of the pieces she performs. Her interpretations of the classics are as enjoyable as a vintage wine made with knowledge, skill and heart.
Jan Söderblom
Jan Söderblom (born 1970) is a Finnish violinist and conductor. Before emerging as a conductor, Söderblom performed as a violinist on solo appearances and as a member of the New Helsinki Quartet. In addition to his background as a soloist, it was the success with the quartet that raised his interest in orchestral musicianship and conducting, eventually leading to conductor studies at the Sibelius Academy – and to a multifaceted international career.
In Finland, Söderblom has conducted prominent orchestras such as the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Tampere Philharmonic, Lahti Symphony Orchestra and Tapiola Sinfonietta. His international commitments include the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, MDR Sinfonieorkester (Leipzig), Danish National Chamber Orchestra and Norwegian Chamber Orchestra.
Jan Söderblom is the artistic director of the Finnish Chamber Orchestra since 2021 and first concertmaster of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra since 2014. He has acted as the artistic director of several Finnish music festivals.
https://jansoderblom.fi/
Isabelle Faust
Isabelle Faust (born 1972 in Germany) is one of the most versatile violinists on the scene, playing both modern and historical instruments, with a large repertoire stretching from Baroque to new works.
Faust has performed with top orchestras internationally. She has co-operated with conductors such as Andris Nelsons, Claudio Abbado, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Daniel Harding, Philippe Herreweghe, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Klaus Mäkelä and Robin Ticciati.
The 2022/23 season sees Isabelle Faust in a variety of events. Her chamber music engagements include solo concerts and collaborations. Faust also renders her artistic service to contemporary music world premieres and other performances. Isabelle Faust’s highlights in the season include concerts with the Vienna Symphony, WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, Berlin Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic and Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. As a curiosity, Isabelle Faust made her debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker in 2009 as the soloist in Robert Schumann’s Violin Concerto in D minor – the same concerto she now performs in Helsinki.
https://www.nordicartistsmanagement.com/artists/isabelle-faust-violin
Fredrik Pacius: The Hunt of King Charles, overture
The Hunt of King Charles by Fredrik Pacius (1809–1891) has gone down in history as the first opera to be composed in Finland. In three acts, it is a drama based on a libretto in Swedish by Zachris Topelius and was a tremendous hit when first performed in 1852. The overture to the opera is considered to be the best orchestral work by Pacius, a German composer and violinist who taught music at the University of Helsinki from 1835 to 1867, was also a conductor and organiser and earned himself the title of “Father of Finnish Music”.
The opera is very much in the spirit of the times, romantic and brimming with patriotic idealism. Stylistically, it follows the line established by Weber, Bellini, Verdi and Donizetti. It tells of a hunting spree made by the young King Charles XI of Sweden. The king is rescued by the daughter of a local fisherman from a plot against his life and in return spares the life of her betrothed, who has been condemned to death for killing one of the royal elks.
Robert Schumann: Violin Concerto in D Minor, WoO 23
The Violin Concerto composed by Robert Schumann (1810–1856) in 1853 is said to reflect the composer’s deteriorating mental health and his thoughts of suicide. Its rejection by Joseph Joachim, for whom it was intended, did little to improve his state of mind. The reason for Joachim’s rejection was quite possibly that he found the solo part too difficult. Joachim nevertheless returned to it in 1855, playing it through in private with Clara Schumann, and together with Brahms they reached the conclusion that it was not worth publishing. The original manuscript was not discovered until the 1930s, and it was first performed, by Georg Kulenkampf, in a version shortened and edited by Paul Hindemith, in Berlin in 1937. Clara Schumann, Brahms and Joachim made a grave mistake in dismissing the concerto, for it is well on a par with other masterpieces of its era. The opening is stormy and romantic, the slow movement an intimate little mood piece, and the finale a polonaise abounding in solo acrobatics.
Franz Berwald: Symphony No. 3 in C Major “Sinfonie singulière”
Franz Berwald (1796–1868) was Sweden’s greatest 19th-century symphonist, writing in the Romantic European style of, say, Berlioz and Mendelssohn. The third of his four symphonies, the Sinfonie singulière, dates from 1845 but was not premiered until 60 years later. Considered the first Nordic orchestral masterpiece, it is in only three movements, though it does have a traditional scherzo baked into its Adagio. This is just one indication of his unconventional handling of form, though most unusual is his approach to harmony.
Born in Stockholm, Berwald began his career as a violinist in the royal court orchestra before departing for Berlin to study. Failing to make a name for himself there as a composer, he turned to orthopaedic surgery and ran a successful clinic. On returning to Sweden, he was once again obliged to take whatever work he could find – as the manager of a sawmill and glass factory. In 1867, he was finally appointed Professor of composition at the Stockholm Conservatory but died after only a year in the post.
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