Women’s choir KYN will premiere two compositions commissioned from Mikko Hassinen and Jukka Linkola in concert "Valoja, varjoja - äänessä etninen jazz" at Savoy-teatteri on 21 October 2014. Both suites fall into the category of so-called ethnic jazz, a genre that KYN has formulated through commissioned works. The genre fuses melodic elements and texts of traditional Finnish folk with rhythmics and harmonic structures borrowed from the field of jazz.
Mikko Hassinen’s Jos minä puhuisin sinulle is a three-song suite for women’s choir, tenor saxophone, double bass and percussion. “The work has been composed to two poems by Virpi Stenlund. There are two underlying emotions in the pair of poems, I think; a yearning for love and a fear of letting it go. While having endeavoured to capture these emotions I have also tried to create an anticipatory but positive vision of future,” tells composer Mikko Hassinen.
Jukka Linkola’s a cappella suite Loitsut uses texts from American native peoples’ songs and Finnish chants. The rhythmic playfulness of the composition and KYN’s spirited interpretation give the archaic material a new edge and make it speak to today’s audience. “I have visited Lake Superior in Michigan a few times, and as I read the local native peoples’ songs and chants these peoples’ love of nature and humour manifested themselves in my mind in essentially song-like shapes. On the other hand, I have found similar characteristics in old Finnish chants and, of course, our own ancient and singular language. It has been my aim to compose music that enhances the texts’ playful and down-to-earth expressivity, without forgetting simple and austere beauty," tells Linkola.
The third work to be heard in the concert will be Jukka Linkola’s Outo kantele which has charmed audiences from France to Taiwan. Women’s choir, accordion and a jazz group will invest this Kalevalan world with a bold cabaret spirit, theatricality and just a sprinkling of jazzy swing.
KYN will be joined by top musicians Johanna Juhola, accordion, Kari “Sonny” Heinilä, tenor sax and flute, Kirmo Lintinen, piano, Ville Herrala, double bass, and Mikko Hassinen, percussion.
KYN is an ambitious women’s choir, driven by passion for music and aiming at a professional approach to making it. KYN is known for their lively expressiveness, original sound and unique repertoire of so-called “ethnic jazz”. The choir performs actively with Finnish top musicians and is a sought-after act at international choral music festivals. In recent years KYN has been invited to perform in France and Taiwan, and it they have proven successful in international competitions and reviews as well. KYN won a gold medal in July in the World Choir Games competition, organised in Latvia. The choirmaster is Kaija Viitasalo.
www.kyn.fi / www.facebook.com/KYNchoir