I’m very happy to announce the first ever Cecilia Damström Festival that will take place next weekend 8-9 March at the House of Nobility, in Helsinki, Finland! The contemporary music group Uuden Ajan Ensemble conducted by Tapio von Boehm have chosen to dedicate the fourth edition of the festival entirely to my music, and I couldn’t be more honoured!
On Saturday the 8th of March at 7pm in the concert Historical Female Portraits in Tones we will hear all of my three piano quintets for the first time in one concert. Minna – Pictures from the Life of Minna Canth, a widow, was one of the first Finnish writers and a social activist. Aino – Emotions from the Life of Aino Sibelius was the dedicated wife of Jean Sibelius, who through her devotion made it possible for her husband to compose all the music we have by him today. Helene – Nuances from the Life of Helene Schjerfbeck was Finland’s most famous modernist painter, who dedicated her life to art. Litterature, music and visual art. A single mother, a housewife and a spinster. In addition to winds, strings and piano we will also hear the use of ebow inside the piano and we will hear the musicians both sing and whistle in four part harmony. There couldn’t be a more perfect day to remember these fantastic historical inspirational women than on women’s day!
On Sunday the 9th of March at 5pm we will hear a selection of my orchestral works. In the first half we will hear Nixus – dedicated to everyone struggling with mental health, Dagbok – my first song cycle composed to my own poems, featuring soprano Hedvig Paulig and Lucrum – Inspired by the deadly sin greed. In the first half we have concentrated on introperspective themes, while we move on to more ecological themes after the intermission. In the second half we will hear Tundo! – dedicated to all refugees around the world, ICE – winner of the Teosto Award and last week played in England by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and Wasteland – a 20 min piece about the impact of fast fashion. This concert is a rare opportunity to hear music I have composed between 2009 and 2022, music from my opus 21 to opus 81 and the first time in over 10 years that my song cycle is performed with orchestra again. A warm welcome to the festival!