Debut Concert – Joasia Cieslak, cello
New musical conventions
The final performance of Joasia Cieślak’s soloist degree will highlight close collaborations with bold and innovative artists whom she’s lucky to call friends. By giving her trust and shifting from what she thought a soloist is, Joasia embarks on a sound voyage with Matilda Seppälä, Chrisitian Balvig and Emil Sana.
Joasia will premiere pieces by two highly acclaimed young composers written for her for this event and she will perform a selection of music by Joasia Cieślak/Emil Sana-duo.
Program
Joasia Cieślak/Emil Sana-duo plays a selection of their new compositions:
Adagietto, Op. 101 and Theme and Variations which are composed entirely from self-made halldorophone recordings.
Shanti, using vocals of Arnbjörg Kristín Konráðsdóttir whom Joasia met on a gong meditation during evening whale watching in Iceland in summer 2022.
Matilda Seppälä: Marionetti. Who’s playing who? for cello solo and string orchestra. Premiere.
Det Jyske Musikkonservatorium string orchestra conducted by Henrik Brendstrup
Premiere of music by Christian Balvig for Joasia Cieślak/Christian Balvig, based on her halldorophone recordings.
The music by 29 year old Finn Matilda Seppälä has been performed by Caprico orchestra, Avanti!, TampereRaw, NYKY Ensemble, Tampering Ensemble, symphony orchestra FIAM and Helsinki Chamber Choir among others. Her works for orchestra, chamber ensemble and choir have been successful in international competitions. For Joasia’s debut Matilda composed a unique twelve minute piece “Marionetti. Who’s playing who?” for cello solo and string orchestra which Joasia will premiere with Det Jyske Musikkonservatorium orchestra conducted by Henrik Brendstrup.
The 29 year old Dane and a brilliant pianist, Christian Balvig, is known for his work as composer and arranger for an array of bands and ensembles. Copenhagen Phil, Det Norske Blåsensemble, Love Shop, Lowly, Dreamers Circus and When Saints Go Machine just to name a few. His own records been critically acclaimed internationally. Christian works seamlessly across different genres and mediums, and has also been hired as producer, film scorer and composer-assistant in several occasions. Jo – Balvig duo will premiere Christian’s innovative music composed with use of Joasia’s halldorophone recordings.
Joasia Cieślak/Emil Sana-duo
Jo – Sana met at the Sibelius Academy and gave first concert in 2021. Music played by the duo hasn’t been written on a paper – it aims to stay human: spontaneous, emotional and vulnerable. Compositions are co-created and based on self-made recordings conducted over the last one and half years. Most recent ones are the sound memories of improvisations on halldorophone (cello-like feedback instrument) from the EMS Stockholm. Live performance features cello, live looping, microcosm pedal and synths complimented with visuals done by Jonatan Snapir.
The duo takes inspiration from electronic, ambient and neo-classical music and welcomes listeners into a cinematic journey.
The 24 year old Emil Sana is a half-French half-Finnish musician, composer, producer and sound artist. He works with film and game music as well as sound design and sonic arts for a multitude of varying forms of projects. He has composed the soundtracks to short films featured in major international festivals and competitions (BAFTA student awards shortlist, Student Academy Awards Finalist, Clermont FilmFest, Tacoma Film Festival, Poitiers Film Festival, Helsinki Film Festival, Music&Cinema Marseille, Tampere Film Festival, Santa Barbara FIlm Festival…). He has extensive interests in various compositional techniques and sound art philosophies as well as recording arts and music production. Sana’s music draws inspiration from a diverse collection of genres, varying from impressionism and minimalism to jazz, ambient and electronic music.
Joasia Cieślak, born in Poland, based in the Nordics cellist, producer, composer and teacher. Passionate collaborator with love for innovation and art. Degree holder from Conservatory of Music Maastricht, Sibelius Academy and The University of Humanities and Economics Łódź. The soloist degree at The Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus redefined her as a musician and a human being. Grateful scholarship holder of the National Fund for Musical Instruments of The Netherlands, Sibelius Academy, The Arts Promotion Centre Finland TAIKE, The Finnish Music Foundation MES, Hanaholmen, Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Finnish-Danish Cultural Fund, Valdemar Hansen and Jenny Viskum Foundation and the Holger Arndts Foundation. Joasia has performed in The Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Finland, Poland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Russia and Japan. She flourishes in cutting-edge performances and projects and chooses to be a talent multiplying leader. She is on a quest to find the love of her life while she premieres new music and contributes to the world of art.
www.joasiacieslak.com
instagram: endpinfem
Thank you Det Jyske Musikkonservatorium orchestra and administration.
Special thank you to these amazing people and artists: Henrik Brendstrup, Christian Balvig, Matilda Seppälä, Emil Sana, Halldór Úlfarsson, and for you halldorophone.
Thank you Elektronmusikstudion EMS Stockholm, The Holger Arndt Scholarship, Sibelius-rahasto, Statens Kunstfond, Hanaholmen, The Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Wojciech Topa and Heikki Takkula.
What’s next for Joasia? Securing: studio recording time and release of the music from today’s concert, performing it live everywhere and growing, these fantastic existing projects and as a human being
#newmusicalconventions