"..Ani is a piece of music in the purest form you can find and an intriguing documentary about this ancient Finnish instrument." [- Eelco Schilder, FolkWorld Issue 07/2008] The kantele player Arja Kastinen (b. 1963) was the first Finnish folk musician to take the Doctor of Music examination in the artistic study programme at the Sibelius Academy in December 2000. What inspired her to do this was the ancient Karelian kantele improvisation. Her first solo album IRO (1995), re-released under the name 'Kantele Meditation' (Warner Innovator Series 1996), was widely paid attention to and is sold out. The CD ANI is a direct continuation to IRO and contains music played on 15-, 14- and 10-string kanteles. The music is based on improvisation and was recorded in one day by Matti Kontio (IMU) in Inkoo, Finland. In her performances, Kastinen mixes the old and new playing techniques presenting the versatile timbres and acoustic properties of the kantele. More information: www.temps.fi