The programme of this meditative solo piano album is built around Solace, a work lasting nearly 40 minutes by Canadian-Finnish composer Matthew Whittall (b. 1975). Slow and beautiful, this postminimalist composition carries echoes of both sorrow and consolation. Recurring gestures and chords are central to its character. Rather than progressing or telling a story in the traditional sense, the music creates a space in which listeners can quietly immerse themselves, listening not only to the music but also to their own inner world.

Sorrow and solace are the themes that unite the entire programme. Sibelius’s Valse triste needs little introduction. Its melancholy main section and bittersweet passages of reminiscence are familiar to many. The restrained emotional intensity and intimacy of Brahms’s music somehow evoke the atmosphere of Solace, despite the striking differences between the two composers. Brahms’s works are also ideally suited to guiding the listener into a world of stillness and gently bringing them back to earth.

Brahms’s Ballade, Op. 10 No. 1, composed in 1854, exudes an epic sense of grandeur and cruelty. His Intermezzo in E-flat major, completed in 1892, is among the most beautiful works in the entire Romantic piano repertoire.

The album opens with a waltz, and the final piece, Whittall’s Valse No. 7, brings the programme full circle. A musical tribute to Erik Satie, this serene composition provides a perfect conclusion to the album.

Risto-Matti Marin