Solace, Flame and Song – Portrait Concert of Composers Sanna Ahvenjärvi and Tapio Lappalainen on Friday, 16 October 2026 at 6:00 p.m., Haapajärvi Parish Hall (Ronkaalankuja 3, 85800 Haapajärvi)
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Performers:
Virpi Räisänen, mezzosoprano
Laura Heikkilä, piano
Johanna Tilus, piano
Tapio Lappalainen, electronics
Emilia Lappalainen, viola/violin
Joonatan Lappalainen, percussion
Experience a unique evening of contemporary Finnish music with Teosto Prize winners Ahvenjärvi and Lappalainen – part of the official programme of the European Capital of Culture Oulu2026. The series of three concerts began on 18 December 2025 in Berlin, Germany, and will continue in October 2026 with concerts in Haapajärvi and Oulu, Finland.
The programme features both collaborative works by the Teosto Prize–winning composers and individual compositions that explore new emotional, sonic, and technological dimensions.
Ahvenjärvi’s own works tend to be characterised by emotional catharsis, comfort and an almost therapeutic vibe. The lyrics for the songs composed by Ahvenjärvi, performed at the concert, are written by Jenni Kinnunen.
Throughout Lappalainen’s career as a composer, working in the different fields of music technology, has been an inseparable part of his artistic identity. Lappalainen experiments with innovative live electronics to create new listening worlds.
The composition concert series of Ahvenjärvi and Lappalainen is supported by:
Oulu Culture Foundation (Oulu2026)
The Society of Finnish ComposersTeosto Cultural Foundation
Finnish Cultural Foundation
City of Haapajärvi
European Union Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
Keskipiste-Leader
Jokilaaksot Music Institute
The New Music October -festival
Arts Promotion Centre Finland
Music Finland
MES – The Finnish Music Foundation
The Finnland-Institut
Finnland Zentrum in Berlin