A Letter to the Other Side

Composer Pehr Henrik Nordgren (1944-2008) served as KPKO's title composer for a long time, and his relationship with the orchestra and its honorary conductor, Juha Kankaase, was very close. 80 years have passed since the birth of Nordgren this year.
The album includes the following works:
Piano Quintet, Op. 44 (1978), where Nordgren has drawn elements from different parts of the world, you can hear e.g. Melodic motifs related to Lapland's yoik traditions and Japanese, Buddhist ritual songs.
The one-part piano quintet is performed by the Kokkola Quartet, which has performed and premiered a great deal of Nordgren's music in various ensembles since the 1980s. In the piano quintet, the Kokkola Quartet is reinforced by pianist Kirill Kozlovski.
String Quartet No. 7, Op. 85 (1992), which Nordgren composed for his Japanese-born wife Shinobu.
Song set to Nils-Aslak Valkeapää's poems (Lávllaráidu Nils-Aslak Valkeapää divttai'e) for baritone, cello and piano, op. 48 (1978) song series is part of Nordgren's extensive song production.
On the album, the work is interpreted by the Finnish-Mexican singer Gabriel Kivivuori Sereno, one of the musical promises of our country's young generation. The cello parts are played by Joanna Hanhikoski from Kokkola, who has been awarded e.g. In the Turku cello competition in 2022.
The last piece on the album is Kalevi Aho's (b.1949) A Letter to the Other Side, performed by the Central Ostrobothnia Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Honorary Conductor Juha Kankaa. The piece was premiered in 2018 at Nordgren's 75th anniversary concert.