Tuomas Kantelinen:
Lumikuningatar / The Snow Queen
Ballet Suite
Based on a fairy tale by H.C. Andersen
Finnish contemporary
Four colour booklet with sleeve notes in English and Finnish.
CD
Released:
August 2013 (Finland)
October 2013 (international)
Catalogue No.:
ODE 1231-2
EAN/UPC Code:
0761195123126
With The Snow Queen, the Finnish National Ballet scored a hit. This success was due not only to Andersen's wonderful story and its brilliant staging but also to the music of composer Tuomas Kantelinen. He says he wanted "to write music that is melodic, beautiful and accessible, as its principal function is to put viewers of all ages into a cheerful Christmas mood. It is a deliberate nod towards the tradition of Christmas ballets for the whole family, such as Nutcracker. I had a great deal of fun creating character dance pastiches that illustrate the conceptions that people have of the musical styles of various countries."
Finland's internationally most successful movie music composer Tuomas Kantelinen has written the music for more than 30 films since the mid-1990s, including Puhdistus (Purge, directed by Antti Jokinen), Äideistä parhain (Mother of Mine, Klaus Härö), Mindhunters (Renny Harlin) and Mongol (Serge Bodrov). Kantelinen has received several awards at home and abroad for his film scores, including the Finnish Jussi Award for Lunastus (The Redemption, 1997) and Rukajärven tie (Ambush, 1999).
In addition to film scores, Kantelinen has written music for TV series and ads. His opera Paavo Suuri (Paavo the Great) was performed at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki in 2000 and broadcast around Europe on the Arte TV channel. He has also written a Piano Concerto, a Guitar Concerto and works for choir, symphony orchestra and chamber orchestra.
Tuomas Kantelinen is at his best when shifting chameleon-like between musical styles and colours and writing music that elicits a genuine emotional response. For this timeless tale, he created a musical score that is at once nostalgic and contemporary.
