DESCRIPTION:
On Thurs 28 Sept 2017, violinist Pekka Kuusisto joins Finnish folk singer, Ilona Korhonen, to present a unique, modern perspective on runo-song, an ancient storytelling tradition from Finland. The Philharmonia Orchestra’s Digital team travelled to Finland to get a preview of what to expect. Ilona sings a story about the origins of the kantele, a traditional Finnish stringed instrument often used to accompany runo-song.

Lyrics:
I was a slave in Estonia.
I received only barley as my wage
And took the barley to Sweden to sow.
I did not stay to see how it grew,
But after five or six weeks
I returned.
There was a deer in my field,
which I took home and fed and cared for.
I took its horns and took them to the blacksmith
and asked him to make a kantele.
He did. But the kantele was not finished.
It was lacking one string.

HEAR PEKKA AND ILONA LIVE: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/1946
Thurs 28 Sept, 2017, 9:45pm
Clore Ballroom, Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London
Free entry, no booking necessary.

Also join us for our season opening concert, featuring music by contemporary Icelandic composers Anna Thorvaldsdottir and Daníel Bjarnason, and Sibelius’s 6th and 7th symphonies, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. Pekka Kuusisto performs the UK premiere of Daníel Bjarnason’s Violin Concerto. Book here: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/1712/london/royal_festival_hall/28_september_2017/esa-pekka_salonen_sibelius

Philharmonia Orchestra’s Opening Weekend: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/date/2017/09/28

These events are part of Nordic Music Days at London’s Southbank Centre: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/festivals-series/nordic-music-days