New Kaija Saariaho Recording

by sarah | Jan 29, 2015

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...

Kaija Saariaho at Marlboro

by sarah | Jul 26, 2014

We are well into the summer music festival season—with a festival for every taste and genre. Chamber music enthusiasts look forward in particular to the Marlboro Festival. Established in 1951 in Vermont, some of the most acclaimed musicians gather every summer to...

Kaija Saariaho: A Primer

by SMBrown | Mar 31, 2014

By Susan M. Brown Though now hailed as one of the greatest Finnish composers of her generation, Kaija Saariaho readily recalls a time at the Sibelius Academy when male teachers balked at teaching a “pretty girl,” claiming it was a waste of their time. But...

History at La Scala

by sarah | Apr 29, 2011

The point that many long-standing European music traditions exclude women is not news. Neither is the fact that blatantly sexist practices continue, in small or large ways, to this day. Anyone who has ever followed the Vienna Philharmonic can attest to that. However,...

Upcoming Concert: Kaija Saariaho

by sarah | Sep 20, 2010

The New York Times recently referred to Kaija Saariaho as “the world’s longest-toiling overnight success.”  The article by Cori Ellison, makes the reference in regard to the success of Saariaho’s first opera “L’Amour de Loin” at the 2000 Salzburg Festival – a...