DESCRIPTION:
Carolina Eyck talks about her instrument, the theremin, and about her collaboration with the composer Kalevi Aho on his theremin concerto 'Eight Seasons' from 2011.

Even if few are able to identify the instrument by sight, the sound of the theremin is familiar to a wide audience from numerous film scores (often for movies of the creepier variety) to which it lends an eerie character -- as in the theme tune to the popular television series Midsomer Murders. Invented in 1920 by a Russian physicist, Léon Theremin, it has however also featured in numerous works by composers of classical music, from Bohuslav Martinu and Percy Grainger to Fazil Say. One of the most recent works for the instrument is Kalevi Aho's 'Eight Seasons', a concerto for theremin and chamber orchestra, written for Carolina Eyck.

Introduced to the theremin by Carolina Eyck, Kalevi Aho became fascinated with both its sound and its uniqueness -- it is the only musical instrument which is played without any physical contact by the performer. Deciding to compose a concerto for Carolina and the Lapland Chamber Orchestra of the far north of his native Finland, Aho explains his reasons:

'Eight Seasons -- and its eight movements, played without a break -- is just like a musical year; since ancient times the Sami people (the indigenous people of Lapland) have divided the course of the year into eight sections. My choice to use the theremin to depict the course of the year in the far North reflects the shamanistic aspect of the instrument: Hearing it can be a magical experience for the listener. The soloist is like a magician, a weaver of spells, producing music just by moving his hands, without touching the instrument at all.'

The wide range of sounds and effects available on the theremin are used by Aho to depict seasonal events such as the first frost, the melting of the ice and the midnight sun, and his score also exploits Carolina Eyck's unusual ability to sing and play simultaneously. The work received its first performance in the Lapland town of Rovaniemi on 11th October 2012, with Carolina Eyck and the Lapland Chamber Orchestra conducted by John Storgårds. Three months later the same performers recorded it for BIS Records, and footage from the recording sessions is incorporated in this video clip, as well as musical excerpts used with permission from Fennica Gehrman, the publisher of 'Eight Seasons'.

A Super-Audio CD with the BIS recording of Kalevi Aho's concerto is released in July 2014, coupled with Aho's Horn Concerto. The disc in question is a so-called hybrid, playable on all standard CD and SACD players, providing the possibility of hearing the music in 5.0 surround sound. Both works are also available as high quality downloads from eClassical.com and leading downloading and streaming providers.

Produced by BIS Records and Carolina Eyck, this video clip was directed by Carolina Eyck and Oliver Krause. Camera, sound and postproduction by Oliver Krause.