Joensuu Winter Music Festival 2022 – The joy of live concerts
The excitement of the encounter between the audience and the performers was present at every concert of the Joensuu Winter Music Festival. Although the decision to drive through the festival had to be stretched and the cancellations of the concerts could not be avoided, 11 inspiring concerts were realized.
The concert of the Joensuu City Orchestra started by Pavel Karmanov's work Valse-Polonaise, which was also the premiere. The longing beautiful music appealed to the audience, who applauded with emotion. The work was commissioned by the Big Music for Small Cities project.
The concert continued with Jean Françaix’s Hommage à l’ami Papageno, where the orchestra’s wind players performed with visiting pianist Justas Stasevskij and chief conductor Eero Lehtimäki. Cecilia Damström's Nixus, commissioned by the Big Music for Small Cities project and performed for the first time for the live audience, also made a big impression on the audience. The concert ended with Jean Sibelius' Pelléas et Mélisande. The stream of the concert reached almost 800 listeners and the audience in Carelia Hall was about 220 people.
We got to enjoy Joensuu Winter Music Festival and its diverse music program for six days. Already looking forward to next year's festival. Hope, everything will be all right.
Photo: Pipsa Piiroinen