Moonlight Concerto

This recording is devoted to two recent concerts by Kalevi Aho, one of Finland's most important contemporary composers. As the creator of an equally important and diverse oeuvre, Aho enjoys working with excellent soloists, for whom he composes works that bring out their musical qualities, inventiveness and personality. The "Concerto for Alto Flute and Strings" makes use of an instrument with a soft tone that is very suitable as a soloist with a small string orchestra. The work consists of six sections, which are played without interruption, and the soloist Sharon Bezaly sometimes switches to the bass flute, which gives the music a mystical touch. The St Michel Strings and their conductor Erkki Lasonpalo contribute to the mysterious atmosphere, in which lyrical and dramatic episodes abound. The double concerto for viola, percussion and orchestra entitled "Moonlight Concerto" was composed at the initiative of a couple of musicians living in Berlin, violist Hiyoli Togawa and percussionist Alexei Gerassimez. Here we are immersed in a Japanese atmosphere that echoes the 1000-year-old tradition of ritual gagaku music. In this work, the percussionist plays instruments not normally heard in orchestra concerts, such as the moon gong, the water phone, a hang drum and nine Thai gongs. The Lahti Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Anja Bihlmaier provides the rich orchestral commentary.