Siblings and Soul Mates concert on 29th of January brings together four voices of Romantic era

Published 22.01.2026

Ukrainian violinist Aleksey Semenenko as soloist of KSO

The Kuopio Symphony Orchestra’s Siblings and Soul Mates season concert on Thursday, 29th of January at 6 pm combines music of four composers of the Romantic era. The Kuopio Music Centre Concert Hall will resonate with works by Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms. Ukrainian violinist Aleksey Semenenko performs Felix Mendelssohn’s beloved Violin Concerto in E minor. The orchestra will be conducted by the French Chloé Dufresne.

The KSO’s 29th January concert traces the invisible threads connecting four voices of the Romantic era — Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, and Johannes Brahms. “We begin with Fanny’s bold orchestral overture setting the stage for Felix’s Violin Concerto in E minor, a youthful work full of lyrical intensity of early Romanticism,” conductor Chloé Dufresne describes the concert’s first half.

Dufresne, who graduated from the Sibelius Academy in 2020 and has since distinguished herself in international conducting competitions, has quickly become one of today’s most sought-after conductors. Beginning with the 2025–26 season, she will serve as Music Director of the Colorado Springs Philharmonic. This season, she will conduct, among others, the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz and the Stuttgarter Philharmoniker.

For violinist Aleksey Semenenko, making his debut in Kuopio, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor holds a special significance. “In my personal view, it’s “Mozart plus”: it has the same lightness and transparency, but with a romantic depth and warmth. The beginning of the second movement reminds me of Schubert’s Ave Maria, and the beginning of the third of something by Rossini”, Semenenko notes.

Semenenko gained international recognition after his success in the 2015 Queen Elizabeth Competition and through the BBC New Generation Artists programme as well as the Young Concert Artists network in New York. This season, he will make his Canadian debut at Bourgie Hall and perform with the Kyiv Symphony at the Berlin Philharmonie, among others.

After the intermission, the dramatic Manfred Overture by Robert Schumann will be heard — a stormy and introspective work inspired by the tormented hero of Lord Byron’s poem. The music reflects not only Schumann’s own struggles but also echoes of his artistic connection with Mendelssohn and the steadfast support of Clara Schumann. The evening concludes with Johannes Brahms’s Variations on a Theme by Haydn, composed by the Schumanns’ closest friend.

Before the concert, an open Pre-Talk will be organized at 5.30 pm at the Lighthall, featuring an interview with the new director of the Kuopio Music Centre and Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Anu Lampela.

Tickets: 34,60 € / 28,10 € senior citizens and groups min. 20 persons / 10,60 € children under the age of 16 and students.

The Copilot AI service was used in the production of this text.

KUOPIO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Producer & Publicity Manager Elina Prepula, tel. 044 718 2364, elina.prepula(at)kuopio.fi
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