This summer, Avant’s Suvisoito will be a blast of contemporary American music – a programme designed by composer Julia Wolfe brings a record number of international guests to Porvoo
The 37th Avant’s Summer Festival will be held in Porvoo from 29.6.-3.7.2022. With the theme “Body Language” The artistic director of the festival is Julia Wolfe, one of the most important American composers of our time.artist.
Wolfe has emerged in the 2000s with works that combine American folklore, genres from rock to minimalism, pervasive energy and unique compositions. A cross-section of his compositions will be heard in Suvisoito, culminating in the closing concert riSe and fLY. Drumming his body and percussion in the work is the legendary Colin Currie. Wolfe, who lives in New York, is known as one of the founding composers of Bang on a Can, an artist collective dedicated to contemporary music, together with Michael Gordonin and David Lang with. The composers of the strongly American concert programme include, among others, Wolfe’s students. Anna Clyne and Shelley Washington.
These composers of the “post-minimalist” era are set against a backdrop of György Ligeti, Steve Reich, Meredith Monk, John Adams and John Luther Adams works. From further back in history Samuel Barberin Adagio for strings and Aaron Copland’s Spring of the Appalachians, which in their day laid the foundations for American art music that was open, unafraid of emotion and genre. Even further afield, Fanny Mendelssohn has been called Wolfe’s godmother, Bach and Beethoven, paragons of energetic and forward-looking music.
Avant will be guest conductor and will be joined by Brad Lubman, one of the leading performers of contemporary American music. In addition to Colin Currie, guest soloists include Bang on Can All stars guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Mark Stewart and the Norwegian Trio Mediæval. The conductor will also be one of Avant’s trusted partners, the captivating József Hárs.
The whole of Porvoo rings – the West Bank sound artwork is unveiled
The Suvisoitto will kick off on Wednesday evening in Pernaja church and the Avant-garde will also take over the old town of Porvoo during the festival. This time, the fanfare will ring out at Town Hall Square on Friday 1 July at 12 noon, from where it will continue to Porvoo Cathedral for a free chamber music concert. On Saturday, the young composers of the future will emerge, and their new works, created during the Composition Workshop course, will finally be premiered at VPK-talo at 13:00 in a free concert.
As part of Suvisoitto, a sound art work will be unveiled on the West Coast, as part of a new Porvoo art programme combining urban development and art. Among the first art projects to be unveiled is a sound artwork created in collaboration between Avant and the City of Porvoo’s cultural services. Short works composed for the smart lighting columns on the beach will be heard through their loudspeakers By Maija Hynnnis, Jennah Vainio and the partner Minna Leinonen and Jussi Suonikko. The opening of the sound artworks will take place in Jokiranta on Thursday 30.6. at 12 noon.
Avanti! congratulates the 10th anniversary of the Art Factory
Once again, Porvoo’s Art Factory will be the base for the summer festival, and the Avantines will also be proudly celebrating its 10th anniversary. The old factory building was dusted off before the festival, from the year it was founded in 1986 until the first decade of the 2000s, when the decision to renovate the factory into a cultural centre finally came to fruition. Opened to the public in 2012, the Art Factory’s concert hall was renamed Avanti Hall, an undeniable recognition of the close relationship between Suvisoito and the city of Porvoo that has deepened over the years.
A new look for Suvi
Avant’s Summer Play has been given a new and unique visual identity by illustrator Lille Santanen. The look of the Suvisoito has been created with her own typography, which is one of Santase’s most distinctive features. Santanen describes his illustration style as organically playful.
– “During the sketching phase of the Summer Play look, I thought that the illustrations would be placed in their own positions in the areas delimited by the grid. However, it turned out that the parts of the illustration do what they like and place themselves in the grid as they please. Summer Play sounds like an event where this can happen to performers and guests.”
Tickets for Avant’s XXXVII Summer Play: “Body Language” are on sale now at Lippupiste outlets and at www.lippu.fi. Concert programmes can be found at: https://avantimusic.fi/suvisoiton-ohjelma/.
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This year, Avantis Summer Music will be filled with lively American contemporary music – a programme planned by composer Julia Wolfe will bring a record number of international guests to Borgå
Avantis Sommarmusik will be held for the 37th time, in Borgå 29.6.-3.7.2022. The festival will focus on the theme “Body Language” and the artistic planning is the responsibility of Julia Wolfe, en av de mest betydande amerikanska tonsättarna just nu.
Wolfes stjärna steg during the 2000s with music that combines American folklore, various styles from rock to minimalism, overwhelming energy and unique compositions. Sommarmusik bjuder på ett tvärsnitt av hennes kompositioner och kulminerar i avslutningskonserten med riSe and fLY, where legendariska Colin Currie trummar på både kropp och slagverk. Wolfe is based in New York and is known as one of the founders of the artists’ collective Bang on a Can, which has produced all kinds of music, together with Michael Gordon and David Lang. The concert programmes have a strong American flavour and, in addition to these names, there are also Wolfe’s songs Anna Clyne and Shelley Washington.
As a background to these themes from a “post-minimalist” era, the network of György Ligeti, Steve Reich, Meredith Monk, John Adams and John Luther Adams. Går vi längre bakåt i historien hittar vi Samuel Barber Adagio for stråkar and Aaron Copland’s Vår i Appalacherna, which in the past formed the basis of American art music, characterised by openness in relation to both phenomena and genres. Ännu längre bak i historien hittar vi Wolfes faddrar Fanny Mendelssohn, Bach and Beethoven, the forerunners of energetic and progressive music.
Guest conductor for Avanti! är Brad Lubman, en av de centrala namnen inom amerikansk samtida musik. Bland solistnamnen ingår förutom Colin Currie gitarristen och multiinstrumentalisten Mark Stewart från Bang on a Can All Stars samt norska Trio Mediæval. Bland dirigentnamnen finns också en av Avantis trogna parhästar, den fascinerande József Hárs.
All of Borgå klingar – ljudkonstverk vid Västra åstranden
Onsdag kväll tjuvstartar Sommarmusik i Pernå kyrka ja Avantigänget rör sig även i Gamla stan i Borgå under festivalens gång. Fanfaren skallar på Rådhustorget fredag 1.7. kl. 12 och därefter blir det en avgiftsfri kammarmusikkonsert i Borgå domkyrka. On Lördag, the festival will give space to young composers – the music they created for the composition medja course will be performed in a free concert in the FBK-huset at 11.00. 13.
As part of Sommarmusik, a ljudkonstverk on Västra åstranden, a part of Borgå’s arts programme that combines new urban development with art, will also be published. One of the first art projects is an art network created in cooperation between Avanti! and Borgå city cultural services. From the högtalare on smartlyktstolpar vid stranden kommer man att höra korta verk komponerade enkom för detta av Maya Hynninen, Jennah Vainio same workplace Minna Leinonen and Jussi Suonikko. Vernissage för ljudkonstverken blir det vid Åstranden torsdag 30.6. kl. 12.
Avanti! congratulates 10-year-old Konstfabriken
Sommarmusik has been based at Borgå Konstfabrik for a long time, and Avantigänget is celebrating its 10th anniversary with pride. The festival was held annually in the old factory building from the first festival summer in 1986 until the first quarter of 2000, when the decision was taken to renovate the factory and turn it into a cultural centre. The new Konstfabriken was opened to the public in 2012 and the concert hall was named Avanti-salen, an obestridligt statement of the close relationship between Sommarmusik and the city of Borgå, which was renewed at the end of the year.
Summer music gets a new profile
Avantis Sommarmusik has been given a new visual profile by illustrator Lille Santanen. I den ingår en egen typografi, ett av av Santanen kännetecken. Hon kallar sin illustrationsstil organiskt lekfull.
– Då jag skisserade upp Sommarmusiks profil tänkte jag att illustrationserna skulle placera sig på egna avgränsade platzser inom rutsystemet. Men medan jag arbetade märkte jag att illustrationsdelarna gjorde precis vad de hade lust till och placerade sig inom rutfältet hur de ville. Sommarmusik låter som ett evenemang, där detta kan hända även musiker och besökare.
Avanti XXXVII Summer Music: “Body Language”. Tickets for the festival will be sold via Lippupiste’s sales outlets and the website www.lippu.fi. Konsertprogrammen finns här: https://avantimusic.fi/suvisoiton-ohjelma/.

