NEWS: CHRONOVARIATIONS Dolby Atmos release out on February 21st, 2025! Winner of the Finnish Critic’s Associations’ 2025 Kritiikin Kannukset honorary prize.
PRESS RELEASE, september 2024:
Acclaimed Finnish saxophonist, composer and sound artist Heli Hartikainen, is set to release CHRONOVARIATIONS on September 6th. Known for their relentless pursuit of new textures, functions, and forms within music, Hartikainen’s work stands as a testament to the power of artistic experimentation.
As a saxophonist, Hartikainen is a passionate instrumentalist who constantly pushes the boundaries of their instrument. At the core of Hartikainen’s creative practice, abstraction and existential curiosity playfully intertwine with an endless love of sound.
“From the start it was clear to me that this work would not adhere to conventional ‘beats per minute’ patterns or traditional forms.,” explains Hartikainen. “I feel that my music doesn’t fit in those boxes; my music is horizontal, vertical and swirling, where the realms of conventional notation are meaningless.
As a composition CHRONOVARIATIONS is a good example of my practice. It’s something I call a ‘scored improvisation’. Basically it’s a timeline of tasks, missions and directions, often notated both in traditional and graphic notation. The long arc/structure is always the same, but within the sections the execution is always different,” they continue.
CHRONOVARIATIONS is a longform immersive sonic journey that explores the themes of time, resonance, and unfolding. Through Hartikainen’s masterful saxophone performance and innovative use of electronics, the album invites listeners to explore a realm where sound evolves gradually, resonates holistically, and unfolds dramatically.
Recorded in the Medieval Nousiainen Church in western Finland, CHRONOVARIATIONSharnesses the building’s acoustics to create a rich tapestry of sound. Using electromagnetic actuator loudspeakers attached to metal objects scattered throughout the church, Hartikainen transforms these objects into unconventional sound sources, resulting in distinct distortions and fascinating harmonics.
Of the themes at the centre of CHRONOVARIATIONS, Hartikainen says, “Time represents the creation of an ever-evolving space and atmosphere where gradual, almost imperceptible changes cause a temporal drift. Resonance symbolises the holistic nature of experiencing music and sound, whether the tools used are ancient or high-tech. Unfolding is the album’s dramaturgical motion from internal to external: from the smallest sounds on the cusp of audibility to overflowing sonority; from muted and compressed to bright and full.”
The album’s recording process was meticulous, with a focus on capturing the textural details of each sound. A sophisticated ambisonic microphone setup, including a ”microphone tree” comprising eight Schoeps ORTF-3D condenser microphones, was used to achieve a 360-degree sound recording, providing listeners with a truly immersive experience.
“On CHRONOVARIATIONS, I explicitly wished to include and embrace sounds of the saxophone that are usually considered extra-musical: the click of my tongue touching the reed, the hiss of the air in the mouthpiece, the resonant clack of the keys, and the inherent overtones of the saxophone’s body,” explains Hartikainen. “Additionally, I explored ideas of analogue and digital crossfading, using spectral effects, experimental microphone techniques and time-stretching effects to highlight these frequently overlooked aspects.”
“The microphone tree served as the main recording point, providing a sense of spatial realism,” continues Hartikainen. “The microphones in close proximity to the metal objects allowed us to balance that realism with a kind of hyperrealism. Binaural audio mixing then created a three-dimensional audio image for regular headphones.”
CHRONOVARIATIONS is not only a testament to Hartikainen’s musical prowess but also a celebration of the boundless possibilities of sound. From the subtle click of a tongue against a reed to the reverberating resonance of metal objects, each sound is meticulously crafted to draw listeners into Hartikainen’s sonic universe. With CHRONOVARIATIONS, Heli Hartikainen invites listeners to embark on a journey of sonic exploration, where time stretches, resonance amplifies, and sound unfolds in unexpected ways.
“CHRONOVARIATIONS has been a long journey that has taken me and my duo partner, sound artist Esther Calderón Morales who plays the live electronics, from digging metal trash in a metal scrap yard and soldering cables in a basement to the stage of Flow festival, one of the biggest festivals in Europe, and everything in between,” says Hartikainen. “This piece has been a catalyst for finding my own artistic core, a real guiding light. I’m so ready and excited to put the album out there.”
BUY CHRONOVARIATIONS DOWNLOAD CODE /
LIMITED EDITION 12″ CLEAR VINYL ON BANDCAMP: HTTPS://HELIHARTIKAINENMUSIC.BANDCAMP.COM
CHRONOVARIATIONS:
Heli Hartikainen: tenor saxophone, composition, concept
Esther Calderón Morales: live electronics, programming
Hugh Sheehan: artistic production
Kaj Mäki-Ullakko: recording, mixing
Virtalähde Mastering: mastering, vinyl engraving
Multiphonic Works 2024
Heli Hartikainen 