Englund: Complete Music for Solo Piano Laura Mikkola

• Einar Englund (1916-1999):
• 1Prelude & Fughetta "Hommage à Bach": Prelude02:59
• 2Prelude & Fughetta "Hommage à Bach": Fughetta01:19
• 3Piano Sonatina No. 2 "The Parisian": I. Allegro con brio02:43
• 4Piano Sonatina No. 2 "The Parisian": II. Andante03:18
• 5Piano Sonatina No. 2 "The Parisian": III. Vivace02:16
• 6Preludium04:22
• 7Pavane & Toccata: Pavane. Adagio02:44
• 8Pavane & Toccata: Toccata. Allegro marcato04:50
• 9Humoresque00:57
• 10Little Toccata01:22
• 11Sicilienne01:14
• 12What the Hens Tell00:26
• 13The Goblin00:32
• 14Scherzino00:28
• 15Prelude No. 1 "Notturno"02:53
• 16Piano Sonatina No. 1 in D Minor: I. Allegro con brio01:44
• 17Piano Sonatina No. 1 in D Minor: II. Sicilienne02:06
• 18Piano Sonatina No. 1 in D Minor: III. Scherzo-Finale02:04
• 19Sinuhe: I. Dance of Sinuhe01:43
• 20Sinuhe: II. Dance of Nefer01:52
• 21Sinuhe: III. Sinuhe and Nefer-Nefer02:02
• 22Sinuhe: IV. Dance of Kaptah and the Girls01:50
• 23Sinuhe: V. War Dance of Horemheb02:10
• 24Introduzione & Toccata: Introduzione01:33
• 25Introduzione & Toccata: Toccata03:15
• 26Piano Sonata No. 1: I. Introduzione ed allegro05:49
• 27Piano Sonata No. 1: II. Notturno05:33
• 28Piano Sonata No. 1: III. Scherzo-Finale04:50
• 29The Lauttasaari Rotary Club Festive March01:21
• Total Runtime01:10:15

Info for Englund: Complete Music for Solo Piano

Einar Englund (1916–1999) was not only one of Finlands major symphonists; he was also one of his countrys most important pianists. He was destined for a virtuoso career until he damaged a finger as a soldier in the Battle of Bengtskjär in the Finnish Continuation War in 1941 but when he later discovered the bullet holes in his beret, he realised he had had a lucky escape! Englund wrote surprisingly little for his own instrument, but the works he did produce glitter with a Prokofievan steely strength and textural clarity. They are also animated with the ironic humour that was typical of the composer himself. The pianist here is one of Finlands finest musicians, Laura Mikkola. The booklet essay is by Christian Holmqvist, Englunds biographer, and is followed bya personal reminiscence of Einar Englund by Martin Anderson, founder of Toccata Classics. Laura Mikkola studied at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and the School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana. She has been the recipient of many awards, among them second prize in the Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition in Brussels and the public prize (1995), first prize in the Maj Lind Competition in Helsinki (1992) and first prize in the Maurice Ravel Piano Competition in France (1988). She was awarded the Finland Prize for Young Artist in 1995. Now a major international artist, she has a repertoire which includes no fewer than 64 concertos. For Toccata Classics she recorded an album of David Matthews piano music.

Laura Mikkola, piano

Laura Mikkola
has been a soloist with Helsinki Philharmonic, Radio Symphony Orchestra of Helsinki, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Mariinsky Theater Orchestra of St. Petersbourg, The Residentie Orkest, Stuttgart Staatsoper Orchestra, St John’s Smith Square Orchestra, London, Royal Philharmonic of Flanders, L’orchestre Philharmonique de Liège, Orchestre National de Belgique, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Virtuosi di Kuhmo, Essen Philharmonic Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic, etc. She has had recitals all over Europe, Japan, United States, in China and in South America, in Columbia and Chile. She has also performed in the Festival International de Colmar, France; 14th Festival de Música de Canarias, Spain; the Helsinki Festival, Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Savonlinna Opera Festival, Finland; Festival Glories of the Keyboards in Manchester, Great Britain; Yokohama International Piano Concert Festival, Japan; Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker, Germany; Lutoslawski Festival, Warsaw, Poland; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, United States; Tonhalle, Zürich, Switzerland; Château de Bourlingster, Luxembourg, Châtelet Paris, France, Rudolfinum Prague, Czech Republic, Zipper Hall, Los Angeles, Filharmonia Narodowa, Warsaw, Poland and many others. Laura Mikkola has been chosen to perform with conductors: Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Leif Segerstam, Sergiu Comissiona, Osmo Vänskä, Valery Gergijev, Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Pierre Bartholomée, Aleksandr Lazarev, Mikko Franck, Okko Kamu, Peter Csaba, Eri Klas, Vladimir Ashkenazy and others worldwide.

Her Suntory Hall debut, Tokyo, was in 1995, Carnegie Hall debut (Weill Recital Hall, New York) was in 1996, her Hollywood Bowl debut with Maestro Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1997, Kennedy Center debut with the Washington National Symphony Orchestra in 2002 (Washington D.C) and her debut with Radio Sinfonie Orchester Franfurt in 2005. Since 2003 she has been the artistic director of Iitti Music Festival (Finland).

She has 46 concertos in her repertoire including: Bartok No. 2, Prokofjev No. 2, von Sauer No. 2, Lindberg piano concerto, Rachmaninov Nos 2 & 3, Beethoven: Triple Concerto. She also plays chamber music with: cellist Martti Rousi, clarinetist Kari Kriikku, violonist Jan Söderblom, Maestro Philippe Entremont, etc. She performs regularly in China and Japan.

Booklet for Englund: Complete Music for Solo Piano