Cellist Nicolas Altstaedt presents the Cello Sonatina and Cello Sonata, Op. 4 by Zoltan Kodály paired with two works by the Finnish composer Olli Mustonen. Born 1967, Mustonen was a student of Einojuhani Rautavaara. Mustonen’s Heavenly Lights (Taivaanvalot) for tenor, cello, and piano is the centerpiece of the program, presented here by Ian Bostridge, Nicolas Altstaedt, and the composer at the piano. “This work was a revelation to me the moment I discovered it. We are immersed in the era of Finnish bards and the folk poems of the Kalevala, a legendary and mystical world whose stories touch us all, regardless of our country of origin,” says Altstaedt. “A closeness to folk art like the one Kodaly sought and found.”








