K QUINTET – Kerkko Koskinen’s New Work Sets the Stage for a New Album

Alba Records releases K QUINTET - A Six-Person Quintet, a digital EP featuring the Lapland Chamber Orchestra’s Wind Quintet Auriga and pianist Anna Laakso. The release offers an anticipated first glimpse of the forthcoming full-length album Confluences - Risteymiä.

About the Work

Kerkko Koskinen’s five-movement K QUINTET began as a work for winds alone. Koskinen abandoned his first sketches, however, after feeling that they followed the traditions of the genre too closely. Bringing the piano alongside the wind players provided the solution and accelerated the writing process, allowing him to complete the piece in four weeks in spring 2023. Despite the addition of a sixth musician, the title remained unchanged. “Quintet looks nicer than Sextet,” the composer explains.

The piano clarifies the rhythmic writing and brings balance to the ensemble’s sound. The five movements are characterized by dense wind textures, trills and melodic writing, while unexpected turns and microtonal quarter-tones introduce tension. Forcefully driven passages give way to stark moments of stillness. The work is structured unusually, with its most expansive movement placed first and each subsequent movement becoming shorter toward the end

The Performers

Wind Quintet Auriga of the Lapland Chamber Orchestra is an active chamber ensemble that performs both within the orchestra and independently. It has established itself as a leading interpreter of new music, premiering numerous Finnish and international works, including compositions by Sunleif Rasmussen, Lotta Wennäkoski and Outi Tarkiainen. The ensemble’s international career includes performances across Europe and Asia, as well as appearances with the Lapland Chamber Orchestra at the BBC Proms in London and in North America.

The piano part is performed by Anna Laakso, an accomplished interpreter of contemporary and chamber music.