Tapiola Sinfonietta
The Tapiola Sinfonietta is one of the exceptionally large number of top orchestral ensembles that flourish in Finland, five-and-a-half-million souls strong. It is the municipal orchestra of the city of Espoo; Tapiola is a district of that city, and the orchestra is based at Tapiola Hall in the Espoo Cultural Center. In 2022, the Tapiola Sinfonietta, under honorary conductor Jean-Jacques Kantorow, backed pianist Alexandre Kantorow in a recording of works for piano and orchestra by Saint-Saëns, including the popular Piano Concerto No. 2.
The Tapiola Sinfonietta was founded in 1987. With 43 members, the group applied itself to the beginning to Viennese Classical-era repertory, performing this music with an ensemble approaching the size originally used. As the orchestra's successes grew, however, the repertory broadened to include Scandinavian works, contemporary music, and more. The group's municipal functions are strong, including performances for school groups and in senior citizen housing complexes, but it has also made numerous foreign tours.
The Tapiola Sinfonietta has proven to be an unusually reliable launchpad for international conducting careers. Its artistic directors have included Jorma Panula, Osmo Vänskä, and violinist-conductor Jean-Jacques Kantorow, who was the artistic director from 1993 to 1999 and conductor from 2000 to 2006 and, according to the orchestra, "was of decisive importance to the shaping of the orchestra's current sound." Kantorow was named the orchestra's honorary conductor in 2011, and guest conductors have included Paavo Berglund, Hannu Lintu, and Masaaki Suzuki, among others. It is also notable that the orchestra's membership has been quite stable, enabling the group to perform frequently without any conductor at all.
By 1997, the Tapiola Sinfonietta had begun to attract the attention of top classical labels. It has recorded often for both the BIS and Ondine labels. It has recorded premieres of works by Einojuhani Rautavaara, Kaija Saariaho, and Magnus Lindberg. In 2017, the orchestra joined pianist Yevgeny Sudbin for a recording of Beethoven's first two piano concertos, and it was featured, along with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, on a recording of works by composer Matthew Whittall the following year. In 2019, the orchestra and Kantorow backed the conductor's son, Alexandre Kantorow, on a recording of Saint-Saëns' Piano Concertos Nos. 3, 4, and 5 on the BIS label. These same forces returned in 2022, this time offering Saint-Saëns' Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 2, along with other works for piano and orchestra. As of the early 2020s, the Tapiola Sinfonietta has released more than 70 recordings.
© James Manheim & Keith Finke /TiVo
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Part: Tabula Rasa / Frates / Collage Sur Bach
Tapiola Sinfonietta, Jean-Jacques Kantorow
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 31 mars 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MUSTONEN, O.: Triple Concerto / Petite Suite / Nonets Nos. 1 and 2 / Frogs Dancing on Water Lilies (Rousi)
Pekka Kuusisto, Martti Rousi, Jaakko Kuusisto, Lisa Batiashvili, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Olli Mustonen
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Saint-Saens: Violin Concerto No. 2 / Spartacus / La Muse Et Le Poete
Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Tuomas Ollila-Hannikainen
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 1 oct. 2001
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jean Sibelius : Six Humoresques for Violin and Orchestra, Rakastava, Pelléas Et Mélisande
Leonidas Kavakos, Tapiola Sinfonietta
Classique - Paru chez Fazer Records - Finlandia le 15 mars 1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart : Concertos pour violon n°3-5
Pekka Kuusisto, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Olli Mustonen
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Saint-Saens: Music for Violin and Orchestra
Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Tapiola Sinfonietta
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 31 janv. 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Concertos pour piano n°4 & 5
Olli Mustonen, Tapiola Sinfonietta
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 27 oct. 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Concertos pour piano n°1 & 2
Olli Mustonen, Tapiola Sinfonietta
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2007
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
20TH CENTURY MUSIC FOR FLUTE AND ORCHESTRA
Petri Alanko, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Okko Kamu
Classique - Paru chez Naxos le 1 avr. 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lalo: Concerto russe - Romance-serenade - Fantaisie-ballet - Piano Concerto
Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Pierre-Alain Volondat, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Kees Bakels
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 5 juin 2012
4 étoiles Classica5 de Diapason24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
RAITIO, V.: Queen of the Flowers - Works for Small Orchestra
Tapiola Sinfonietta, Tuomas Ollila-Hannikainen
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Terral, Strings to the Bone, Chamber Symphony
Tapiola Sinfonietta, John Storgårds
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 5 mai 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Choral Concert: Tapiola Choir - BERGMAN, E. / JOHANSSON, B. / SALLINEN, A. / RAUTAVAARA, E. / KORTEKANGAS, O. (Dreams)
Elina Laakkonen, Nora Rissanen, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Tapiola Choir, Osmo Vänskä, Erkki Pohjola
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rimsky-Korsakov / Tomasi / Rota: Trombone Concertos
Christian Lindberg, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Osmo Vänskä
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 31 mars 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
BEETHOVEN, L. van: Piano Concerto No. 3 / Piano Concerto in D major, Op. 61a (Mustonen, Tapiola Sinfonietta)
Olli Mustonen, Tapiola Sinfonietta
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MOZART, W.A.: Clarinet Concerto in A major / MOLTER, J.C.: Clarinet Concertos Nos. 1, 3 and 4 (Kriikku, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Storgards)
Kari Kriikku, Tapiola Sinfonietta, John Storgårds
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vocal Recital: Mattila, Karita - PORTER, C. / KERN, J. / WEBBER, A.L.
Karita Mattila, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Pekka Savijoki
Musique vocale (profane et sacrée) - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bruckner: Symphonies Nos. 0 & 1
Tapiola Sinfonietta, Mario Venzago
Musique symphonique - Paru chez CPO le 3 janv. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bruckner : Symphony No. 5
Tapiola Sinfonietta, Mario Venzago
Symphonies - Paru chez CPO le 4 nov. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich: Chamber Symphonies
Tapiola Sinfonietta, Jean-Jacques Kantorow
Classique - Paru chez BIS le 1 janv. 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven, L. Van: Gratulations-Menuet in E-Flat Major / 12 Contredanses / 12 Minuets / Ritterballett
Tapiola Sinfonietta, John Storgårds
Classique - Paru chez Ondine le 1 janv. 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo