Jan Söderblom

At first it looked like all summer festivals would be lost this year, but now that restrictions are being eased, there are signs of revitalisation everywhere, and the field of culture is no exception. In the wake of a string of cancellation announcements, streaming events and live concerts for limited audiences are being prepared near and far. While this is a classic case of ‘watch this space for further developments’, what is Finland’s exceptional classical music festival summer looking like as of now?

Selim Palmgren was congratulated after the premiere of his Piano Concerto No. 5 (1942) by a personage no less than Sibelius himself, and listening to Alba’s new release of Palmgren’s complete piano concertos it is easy to understand why.

On Alba’s new recording, Henri Sigfridsson makes the most of Palmgren’s brilliant solo parts in The River (Piano Concerto no. 2) and Metamorphoses (no. 3) without reducing them to shallow virtuoso vehicles.