Thanks to Q2 Music for their feature and review of the new CD of Kaija Saariaho’s works!  Reviewer Daniel Stephen Johnson says this about Saariaho:

In an era when the very notion of a classical “masterpiece” has all but fallen apart in the face of competing, often contradictory musical values, Kaija Saariaho may be the closest thing to a master that classical music has left. Utterly original and new, her music is nevertheless recognizable as a successor to an old French tradition of rich lyricism and color: the color of the orchestration is as integral to the substance of the work as melody, harmony or rhythm, and often so artfully accomplished as to blur the distinctions between these elements.

Read the full review on the WQXR website, or listen to excerpts from the new CD on the label’s website.