Pekka Jalkanen: Viron orja (The Serf of Viro) for two violins and string orchestra

Pekka Jalkanen’s (b. 1945) Viron orja (The Serf of Viro) for two violins and string orchestra (1980) is one of the earliest and best-known examples of Finnish minimalism. The work won first prize in the Kaustinen Composition Competition in 1981 designed to yield works incorporating folk music in novel ways. Viron orja is is based on an ancient folk song (runolaulu), which was written down in 1888 in Sakkula, Finland. Buy now