I Am a River - Choral Music by Kaija Saariaho & Elena Tulve

$21.99
Label
BIS
Release Date
April 17, 2026
Format
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    Featuring ⌄
    • COMPOSER
      Kaija Saariaho, Helena Tulve
    • PERFORMER
      Helsinki Chamber Choir
    Product Details ⌄
    • RELEASE DATE
      April 17, 2026
    • UPC
      7318599927428
    • CATALOG NUMBER
      BIS-2742
    • LABEL
      BIS
    • NUMBER OF DISCS
      1
    • GENRE
      Contemporary Era
    Works ⌄

    1. I am a River

      Composer: Helena Tulve

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    2. Lumen valosta (On/From the Light of Snow)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: members Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    3. I. Jag vill inte tala… (I do not want to talk…)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    4. II. Och du gick, flög… (And you passed, flew…)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    5. III. Nej, vi fick ej… (No, we didn’t get to…)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    6. Suomenkielinen sekakuorokappale

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Performer: Joel Ward, Jukka Jokitalo

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    7. I. 1. Hekti: Aamutuima (First hour: Daybreak)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Performer: Veera Kuusirati

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    8. II. 2. Hekti: Työ (Second hour: Work)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Performer: Veera Kuusirati

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    9. III. 3. Hekti: Kaipausaika (Third hour: The Hour of Longing)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    10. IV. 4. Hekti: Mystinen Aika (Fourth hour: The Mystic Hour)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    11. V. 5. Hekti: Yön sarastus (Fifth hour: Evening Twilight)

      Composer: Kaija Saariaho

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Performer: Linnéa Sundfær Casserly

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    12. I. Nachts, wenn das Pendel der Liebe schwingt… (At night, when the pendulum of love swings…)

      Composer: Helena Tulve

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek

    13. II. Zärtliche Nacht (Tender Night)

      Composer: Helena Tulve

      Ensemble: Helsinki Chamber Choir

      Conductor: Nils Schweckendiek


Finnish Kaija Saariaho and Estonian Helena Tulve, two composers with highly individual voices, both explore instrumental color as a core element of their work. Saariaho's vocal works particularly reveal the full expressive richness of her music. Early pieces like Suomenkielinen sekakuorokappale and Nej och inte established her unique grammar of disintegrating sonic and semantic units; later works such as Lumen valosta and Kesapaiva further develop this approach with extended vocal techniques. Tulve's music "grows out from simple primary impulses, being influenced by natural patterns, organics and synchronicity." I Am a River, based on verses by the 13th-century Persian scholar, poet and mystic Rumi, explores the connection between choral music in resonant church acoustics and sensorial mysticism. Nachtliche Gesange, based on texts by exiled German-speaking Jewish poets, draws it's sonic material from the phonetic properties of the German language. These works of unusual beauty are entrusted to the expert voices of the Helsinki Chamber Choir under Nils Schweckendiek. This GRAMMY-awarded collaboration, previously heralded for their Saariaho album Renaissance (BIS-2662), promises a profound interpretation of these contemporary works for choir.