From Close and Far Away

The turn of the century has seen a world that grows smaller by the day. The Helsinki Chamber Orchestra is a perfect example of this, with members from Finland and all around the globe. This program celebrates the all-embracing character of music with a mix of composers that have traveled far from home to gain inspiration, and others that wrote their scores right here in Helsinki. The program opens with the joyful Italian Symphony of Felix Mendelssohn, light hearted and happy following a trip to Italy. After this comes two very special performances of works for violin and orchestra by Finnish composers: the Variations on the song "Studenter äro muntra bröder" by Fredrik Pacius, composer of the Finnish national anthem, and the world premiere of the Air Élégiaque by Robert Kajanus, the founder of the orchestra that would one day become the Helsinki Philharmonic. The program ends with Bohuslav Martinů’s great Sinfonietta “La Jolla”, written for the Musical Arts Society of La Jolla, California, by a composer in exile, far from his native Czechoslovakia. Four pieces that pay tribute to the fact that, no matter where we are, no matter how close or far from home, beautiful music is universal.