album reviews

"The dualism of serenity and restlessness on the one hand and the leaps of a monkey mind on the other can be found on the appropriately titled album Monkey Mind released by trumpet player Verneri Pohjola in November 2023," writes Santeri Kaipiainen.

Josefiina Vannesluoma, the fourth member of the vocal group Signe released an excellent solo album, giving flight to poems by Edith Wharton.

Pekko Käppi’s recent albums lean toward poignant ballads, often with a subversive twist – and the eerie, unsettling sound of his electric jouhikko.

Finland’s latest star conductor, Klaus Mäkelä, has caused a bit of a stir with his Decca label debut - a full cycle of Sibelius Symphonies, no less. But what part of the success is calculated studio work and what is an exceptional flow of music that can also be achieved in concert? To find out, we can compare the studio recording to a recent live experience at Hamburg Elbphilharmonie.