Watch the world premiere of Wiegenlied

Oslo Philharmonic's season began with new music by Finnish composer Sauli Zinovjev. Now the world premiere is available on Youtube.

Conductor Klaus Mäkelä and composer Sauli Zinovjev after the premiere of Zinovjev's new work Wiegenlied.

Photo Fred-Olav Vatne

− I first met Sauli when I was asked to conduct one of his pieces in Finland several years ago and I immediately thought that his was a very interesting new voice, says Oslo Philharmonic's chief conductor Klaus Mäkelä.

− Since then I have conducted many of his works and also premiered a number of them.

In August, Mäkelä conducted the world premiere of Sauli Zinovjev's Wiegenlied, commissioned by the Oslo Philharmonic.

Echoing the spirit of Mahler and Sibelius

Klaus Mäkelä wanted to perform Mahler's Symphony No. 1 in his first concert as Oslo Philharmonic's chief conductor on 19th August 2020. At the same time, he wanted to begin the concert with new music.

− It was clear to me that Sauli’s music would fit perfectly as an opening piece alongside Mahler. Even though his language and expression is new I find that his spirit echos that of composers who were writing at the turn of the century, including both Mahler and Sibelius. He writes very skilfully for the orchestra and allows the musicians to play with full sonority.

Watch the premiere of Wiegenlied in this video:

Sauli Zinovjev's Wiegenlied performed in Oslo Concert Hall in August 2020.

Oslo Philharmonic on Youtube