Axel Ruoff: Organ Music, Volume Five Jan Lehtola (organ of St Paul’s Church, Helsinki)

• Axel Ruoff (b. 1957): Memento creatoris tui for baritone and organ:
• 1 Ruoff: Memento creatoris tui for baritone and organ 12:42
• Messe basse for soprano and organ:
• 2 Ruoff: Messe basse for soprano and organ: I. Introitus 06:01
• 3 Ruoff: Messe basse for soprano and organ: II. Kyrie 05:45
• 4 Ruoff: Messe basse for soprano and organ: III. Sanctus 02:40
• 5 Ruoff: Messe basse for soprano and organ: IV. Agnus Dei 06:47
• In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ:
• 6 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 1 O bleibe treu den Toten 07:30
• 7 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 2 Lied der Toten 02:35
• 8 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 3 O Herr, gib jedem seinen eignen Tod 03:55
• 9 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 4 Vergiss mein nicht 03:38
• 10 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 5 Ausgang 01:17
• 11 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 6 Tiefstille 06:05
• 12 Ruoff: In Hora Mortis for medium voice and organ: No. 7 Selig sind die Toten 03:26
• Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca:
• 13 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Thema 00:58
• 14 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 1: Ländler 01:44
• 15 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 2: Danse populaire 00:27
• 16 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 3: Marsch 02:26
• 17 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 4: Andante 00:47
• 18 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 5: Choral 01:01
• 19 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 6: Walzer 01:19
• 20 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 7: Galopp 00:43
• 21 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 8: Interludium 00:43
• 22 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 9: Polka 00:31
• 23 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Var. 10: Grave 01:06
• 24 Ruoff: Happy Birthday. Variationen und Fuga grottesca: Fuga grottesca 04:09
• Total Runtime 01:18:15

Info for Axel Ruoff: Organ Music, Volume Five

This final installment of the organ compositions of Axel Ruoff (born in Stuttgart in 1957) presents two starkly contrasted sides of his musical personality: three of them, for voice and organ, are concerned with the spiritual – two even addressing head-on the issue of death itself – and are thus solemn and hieratic, whereas the concluding work is a whimsical, tongue-in-cheek set of variations on ‘Happy Birthday’, written as a present for Ruoff’s publisher on his 80th birthday.

Mari-Anni Hilander, soprano
Henri Tikkanen, baritone
Jan Lehtola, organ of the St. Paul’s Church, Helsinki

Mari-Anni Hilander
is a Finnish soprano and a teacher of singing. A student of music education and vocal music, she graduated from the Sibelius Academy in 1996. She gained a qualification in singing in spring 2010 and supplemented her studies at the Theatre Academy in Helsinki, where she also qualified in the field of theatre pedagogy. Throughout the early part of this century she spent a lot of time as a performing artist, freelance musician and teacher of singing in different parts of Finland and Europe. Her singing repertoire extends to ancient music, rhythm music, hymns and modern art music. Since 2004, Hilander has been studying with Professor Dorothy Irving. She is currently a lecturer in classical singing at the Kuopio Music and Dance Academy. She is also in demand as a trainer in vocal skills of singers and choirs all round Finland. From 2017 Mari-Anni Hilander will start work as a lecturer in vocal art at the Sibelius Academy.

Henri Tikkanen
made his debut in Helsinki Opera in 2020 singing the role of Goswin von Herike (T. Pylkkänen, Mare ja hänen poikansa). In April 2020 Tikkanen will be seen as Guglielmo (W.A. Mozart, Così fan tutte) in Sibelius Academy’s production in Helsinki.

Feeling at home on stage Tikkanen finds opera fascinating and enjoys playing with the dynamics between fellow actors, the music and the audience. Tikkanen also has a burning passion for Lieder. Encouraged by winning the prize for 2nd place of the Helsinki Lied competition with his duo partner Mariola Aniolek in 2015, Tikkanen has been increasingly active as a recitalist.

In May 2020 Tikkanen will graduate as a Master of Music from the Sibelius Academy opera programme. During his studies Tikkanen has also worked with internationally known singers and coaches such as Dorothy Irving, Soile Isokoski, Konrad Jarnot, Jeffrey Goldberg and Martin Katz.

Over the past few years Tikkanen has performed in opera productions such as Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking (UK premiere 2018) with Joyce DiDonato and Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi (2018) with Christopher Purves. Recent roles include Melisso (G.F. Händel, Alcina), Tarquinius (B. Britten, The Rape of Lucretia) and Ben (G. C. Menotti, The Telephone).

Tikkanen has also sung as a soloist with Oulu Symhony Orchestra, Kuopio, Lohja and Hämeenlinna City Orchestras and Pori Sinfonietta.

Tikkanen’s artistic development and work have been supported by Finnish Cultural, Martin Wegelius, Selim Eskelin and Pro Musica foundations.

Booklet for Axel Ruoff: Organ Music, Volume Five