专辑简介

The passing away of Einojuhani Rautavaara (1928–2016), one of the most performed Finnish composers after Sibelius, left a deep void in the field of Finnish contemporary music. This new album by cellist Tanja Tetzlaff and pianist Gunilla Süssmann includes Rautavaara’s rarely heard works written for cello and piano. This album showcases Rautavaara’s skill in writing music for these two instruments and gives an opportunity for discovery. Rautavaara’s creation for cello span several decades and highlight the importance of the instrument for Rautavaara’s oeuvre. The cornerstone of Rautavaara’s cello chamber music are the three sonatas. The earliest of the sonatas, a four-movement Sonata for Solo Cello, was written in 1969 and contains Baroque influences. Prior to this, the composer had already written Two Preludes and Fugues for cello and piano in 1955 firmly rooted in the Neo-Classical tradition as a young student. Soon after completing his solo cello sonata, the composer started writing his Neo-Romantic Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1. However, the work was left unfinished and completed almost 30 years later, in 2001. Cello Sonata No. 2, completed in 1991, is much different in style, more modern and edgy, but based on a work written for a cello music competition in 1975. Polska (1977) for two cellos and piano is based on a folk tune from Rantasalmi. The origin of this work is connected to the genesis of Rautavaara’s first published opus, Fiddlers (Pelimannit) from the early 1950s. Song of My Heart (Sydämeni laulu) is the composer’s transcription from an aria included in his opera Aleksis Kivi (1995–96). In 2000, Rautavaara arranged the piece for cello, and fittingly for this funereal piece dedicated it to the memory of Estonian composer Lepo Sumera. Cellist Tanja Tetzlaff performs an extensive repertoire, including the staple solo and chamber music literature, and important compositions of the 20th and 21th centuries. Tanja Tetzlaff has played with leading orchestras such as the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Bayerischer Rundfunk, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Royal Flanders Philharmonic, Spanish National Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre de Paris and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and collaborated with conductors such as Lorin Maazel, Daniel Harding, Philippe Herreweghe, Sir Roger Norrington, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Dmitri Kitajenko, Paavo Järvi, Michael Gielen and Heinz Holliger. Chamber music also plays a significant part in her career, with regular appearances alongside Lars Vogt, Leif Ove Andsnes, Alexander Lonquich, Antje Weithaas, Florian Donderer, Baiba and Lauma Skride, and her brother, Christian Tetzlaff, and with her duo partner Gunilla Süssmann. In 1994 Tanja founded the Tetzlaff Quartett, with Christian Tetzlaff, Elisabeth Kufferath and Hanna Weinmeister. Pianist Gunilla Süssmann has performed in venues like the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Wigmore Hall, Louvre, Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, and she is a popular guest in major chamber music festivals in Norway and abroad. English Chamber Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, WDR Köln and Staatskapelle Weimar are among the many orchestras she has been soloist with. Chamber music has a precious place in her heart, and the core of this love is the 17-year-long collaboration with cellist Tanja Tetzlaff. Their symbiotic playing is described as magical by the press, and they have previously released also two albums together.