Scherzo

Commissioned by and dedicated to Akademisk Kor Århus and Jonas Rasmussen.

From the composer’s preface:

”The Finnish-Swedish poet Edith Södergran (1892–1923) was one of the first modernists among Nordic poets. During her short life she published four collections of poems – the first of which is Poems in 1916. “Scherzo” from her 1919 collection Rosenaltaret (“The Rose Altar”), is a poem where the lyrical “I” is closely related to the persona of the poet. In a dreamlike scenario, it describes how the ego is deconstructed on its way into the cosmos, merging with the stars. Fully aware that the end was drawing near, Södergran inserts herself into the poem as a dancer on a frayed tightrope – ready to snap – where the passage of time is a mocking abyss.” – Per Drud Nielsen

Listen to the first half of the piece, from a live recording with Akademisk Kor Århus.