ON THE BORDER

On the Border is a large-scale multichannel sound installation created in spring 2022 during my residency at NART in Narva, located on the border between Estonia and Russia. The work explores the question Who am I? and more broadly, Who are we? in a world where borders and identities are constantly shifting.

The installation was made in collaboration with four choirs: Narva Music School Girls Choir, Narva Estonian Language House Tandem Choir, Narva Museum Folk Ensemble “Suprjadki,” and the Finnish Nomad Vocals Choir. Forty singers participated, half of whom identify as Estonian Russians. Each singer was recorded individually, and their voices, breaths, and speech are played back in the space from separate speakers. Visitors can listen to individual voices or experience the choir as a collective whole.

The musical foundation is an abstract, delicate version of the Finnish and Estonian national anthem “Maamme laulu / Mu Isamaa,” where the recognizable melody emerges only briefly. The piece creates a space where people from different backgrounds can sing, breathe, and be together, even momentarily, without the polarization caused by geopolitical borders and narratives.

Narva is the most Russian-speaking city in Europe, with 96 percent of the population speaking Russian. Although the physical border is clear, local identity is layered and complex – a mix of Russian, Estonian, and unique Narvan culture. The work invites visitors to rest in the space between people, reflect on their own sense of belonging, and experience what it feels like to merge into an aesthetic experience.

MY ARTISTIC PRACTICE AND CORE WORK

I am interested in how sound, space, and community can open new possibilities for exploring human experience, empathy, and belonging. My work is based on long-term collaboration with communities, choirs, and individuals. I aim to create spaces where individual vulnerability and collective experience can meet.

Sound art for me is not just a technical exercise but a way to build environments where both privacy and community can be felt. Multichannel installations like On the Border allow each voice and breath to be heard individually while forming part of a larger sonic fabric. This illustrates how individual imperfection can become collective strength, and how aesthetic experience can be both personally and communally healing.

My approach is grounded in deep listening and radical empathy. I strive to create works where external authorities, borders, and preconceptions do not define encounters. Influenced by Buddhist metta practice and John Cage’s Zen-inspired sound philosophy, I build spaces where everyone can be present and hear others as innocent, without predefined roles or limits.

My works are often site-specific and connected to the history of a place – like the border city of Narva, where identity and belonging are constantly negotiated. My working method is processual and participatory: I build works together with communities, choirs, and other artists, giving space for local voices and experiences.

I believe aesthetic experience and catharsis can be powerful tools for transformation. They help release tensions, fears, and boundaries on both individual and collective levels. When individual vulnerability becomes part of a collective voice, it creates space for acceptance, bodily liberation, and new forms of community.

By highlighting On the Border, I want to concretize how sound, community, and radical empathy are at the heart of my work. This installation exemplifies how sound art can create a space where human connection, identity, and the deep longing to be heard become visible – and where aesthetic experience can transcend boundaries, building hope and understanding in a world that needs more community and peace.

ON THE BORDER (CHAPTER V) / RAJALLA, OSA V / НА ГРАНИЦЕ / PIIRIL @ PORVOO ART FACTORY 26.11.2022 – 8.1.2023

Äänitaiteilija ja koollekutsuja: Jaakko Autio / Sävellys: Jussi Mattila / Valosuunnittelija: Pasi Pehkonen / Näyttelykoordinaattori: Henrik Lindqvist / Kuorot: Narva music school girls choir (EE), Narva Estonian language house Tandem choir (EE), Narva museum folk ensemble “Suprjadki” (EE) and Nomad Vocals Choir (FI) / Teoksen laulajat, Singers in the installation: Супрядки” на записи 1 мая 2022: Марина Кувайцева / Marina Kuvaitseva Галина Быстрова / Galina Bõstrova Ирина Воробьева /Irina Vorobjova Мария Изюмова / Maria Izjumova Татьяна Климина / Tatjana Klimina Римма Матвеева / Rimma Matvejeva Ольга Сергеева / Olga Sergejeva Елена Юркевич / Jelena Jurkevitš Олег Кашин / Oleg Kašin Степан Пидвысоцкий / Stepan Pidvysotskiy Владимир Чердаков / Vladimir Tšerdakov. Narva music school. Ensemble «Yakub-bend-A».  Participants:  Alissa Milovidova, Valentina Starodubtseva, Evelina Koop, Kristel Treinbuk, Sille Reinsalu, Marija Eroshkina. Teacher Alla Yakubova / Nomad Vocals: Eero Lahtinen, Emma Jämsen, Joel Alve, Joona Rytkönen, Juulia Karppi, Kasper Korhonen, Linda Pennström, Matleena Vuori, Sakari Siira, Tatu Huotarinen, Emma Pitkänen, Lasse Kettunen, Tiina Leskinen, Siiri Lautamies, Anna Voutilainen, Jaakko Örmälä, Heta Ikonen, Tiila Vuori, Eevi Kortelainen, Reetta Karhunen, Ville Hämäläinen & Jutta Korhonen / Kiitos: Hilla Väyrynen, Satu Järvinen, Johanna Rannula, Aleksei Ivanov, Vasilii Beliakov, Oleg Trofimovä, Anastasia Savinskaya, Artem Nikolajenko, Yaasiin Ali, Abdi Musse & Ranieri Scoccia, Maritta Manner, Olli Haataja / The work is supported by SKR, Taike.

Today has been a busy day at the exhibition and there has been so much good feedback and requests to convey greetings to the artist that I am posting the news here.

One couple said that they visited Taidetehdas for the third time today to experience the exhibition and they were once again impressed and moved by what they experienced. Another couple said that they had visited the exhibition for the second time. The lady told us to invite you to Taidehall again! They asked me to convey their great thanks. The third couple, who had just left, sat listening to the show for probably almost an hour. They said that the exhibition experience was “like nothing else” and how the work touched the frequencies of the soul and heart. They said that they experienced many moods with the work, from despair to hope. And many have thanked the artist and stated that “it was good that we came here.” Here were my promised greetings to the artist.

– Sari (The supervisor of the exhibition).

On The Border (Chapter V) contemplates the question “Who am I?” in a world fragmented by geopolitics. The work was created as part of residency period in Nart residency in Narva (spring 2022). Narva is located right on the border between Estonia and Russia, and there is a 96% Russian-speaking population. Three local choirs joined on the creation of this piece. The music composed to this installation is a new version ofFinnish and Estonian national Anthem song Maamme Laulu/Mu Isamaa. 40 singers joined the recording session, half of whom are ethnically Estonian Russians.

The piece creates a momentary utopia where people from different ethnic backgrounds can sing and breathe together, and merge into an aesthetic experience.

Rajalla (Osa V) pohtii kysymystä “Kuka minä olen?” geopolitiikan pirstomassa maailmassa. Teos syntyi osana Aution residenssityöskentelyä Narvassa, Nart residenssissä keväällä 2022 (SKR). Narva sijaitsee aivan Viron ja Venäjän rajalla, ja siellä on 96% Venäjänkielinen väestö. Teos kutsuu vierailijaa ihmisten väliseen tilaan lepäämään, ja pohtimaan omaa kuuluvuutta maailmaan. Kuultava musiikki on uusi versio Maamme laulusta / Mu Isamaa. Teoksessa laulaa 40 laulajaa, joista puolet on identiteetiltään Viron Venäläisiä. Teos luo hetkellisen utopian tilan jossa ihmiset eri etnisistä taustoista voivat laulaa ja hengittää yhdessä, sekä sulautua osaksi esteettistä elämystä.

ON THE BORDER / RAJALLA (CHAPTER IV) @ OPERA HELSINKI, WORLD CITIES CULTURE SUMMIT 5-6.10.2022

Jaakko Autio’s sound installation “On The Border / Rajalla” in World Cities Culture Summit 2022, Helsinki Opera 5-6.10.2022 / Event Producers: Claire Delholm and Laura Arala (City of Helsinki) / The installation is made as collaboration with four choirs: Narva music school girls choir (EE), Narva Estonian language house Tandem choir (EE), Narva museum folk ensemble “Suprjadki” (EE) and Nomad Vocals Choir (FI) / Music composer: Jussi Mattila (Original Maamme laulu/Mu Isamaa by Fredrik Pacius 1847) / Installing helpers: Jaakko Korkalainen, Yaasiin Ali, Abdi Musse & Ranieri Scoccia / Thank you: Olli Haataja

On The Border was a part of World Cities Culture Summit 2022 at Opera House in Helsinki. The installation has two parts: The fist 26 channel sound installation starts on the main entrance of Opera house, the second part of the installation is played in the Opera house Alumni stage through 32 channel sound system.

From 5-7 October, Helsinki will host the World Cities Culture Summit 2022, bringing together delegates from 42 cities to discuss how government policy can address local and global challenges within the culture sector. This year, the summit will coincide with the launch of WCCF’s annual Report on 5 October, which gathers more than 200 case studies demonstrating the resilience of cities during the Covid-19 pandemic and the use of culture as a powerful tool to face profound challenges. Its key message: cultural leaders must collaborate across government departments to collectively adopt a mission-led approach, with people, place and planet at its heart.

Paavo Arhinmäki (Deputy Mayor for Culture and Leisure of the City of Helsinki), and Reetta Heiskanen (City of Helsinki’s Acting Deputy Culture Director) will join Justine Simons OBE (Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries, Mayor of London’s Office, and Chair of World Cities Culture Forum) in welcoming over 100 deputy mayors, city representatives and cultural leaders to the Helsinki summit.

Through a series of debates and workshops, the delegates will exchange views on urgent issues including post-COVID-19 reconstruction, the preservation and development of creative spaces and new culture funding models. The collaborative spirit of the summit hopes to encourage delegates to share regional challenges and work towards progressive solutions with the advice of the network. Previous summits have led to new initiatives including: ACCESS, a Europe-wide cultural policy network to develop inclusive access within culture and the creative industries; and WCCF’s Leadership Exchange Programme, involving 21 different cities via 11 exchanges, with thanks to Bloomberg Philanthropies and Google Arts and Culture.

Delegates will visit the city’s main cultural institutions and enjoy artistic performances kindly arranged by Helsinki City Council. Summit events will be held in venues including the Finnish National Opera, the Central Library Oodi, Amos Rex, and Lapinlahden Lähde, and performances will feature a specially commissioned work by dancer-choreographer Susanna Leinonen, experimental music by Suistamon Sahko and a keynote speech by conductor Dalia Stasevska.

More information about WCCF http://www.worldcitiescultureforum.com/

On The Border

“On The Border” contemplates the question “Who am i” in a world fragmented by geopolitics. The work was born on the Russian-Estonian border in Narva as a part of my three month residency at NART. Narva is the most Russian city in Europe with 96% of the Russian-speaking population. Although the geographical boundary is clearly drawn on the border between Russia and Estonia, the question of the locals’ own identity is a mixture of both, Estonia and Russia. “On the border” installation, 40 singers are heard singing, breathing and speaking together. The singers are Finns, Estonians and Estonian Russians. There are clusters from the melody of Finland’s and Estonians national anthem “Maamme laulu/Mu Isamaa”, which we share in Finland and in Estonia. The visitor can listen to each singer’s individual voice, breathing and singing separately, or listen to the choir as a whole.

I hope the installation takes people from the realm of time to timeless, where we can momentarily remember how it feels to melt and be together without the polarization of opposite views.

Singers in the installation: Супрядки” на записи 1 мая 2022: Марина Кувайцева / Marina Kuvaitseva Галина Быстрова / Galina Bõstrova Ирина Воробьева /Irina Vorobjova Мария Изюмова / Maria Izjumova Татьяна Климина / Tatjana Klimina Римма Матвеева / Rimma Matvejeva Ольга Сергеева / Olga Sergejeva Елена Юркевич / Jelena Jurkevitš Олег Кашин / Oleg Kašin Степан Пидвысоцкий / Stepan Pidvysotskiy Владимир Чердаков / Vladimir Tšerdakov. Narva music school. Ensemble «Yakub-bend-A».  Participants:  Alissa Milovidova, Valentina Starodubtseva, Evelina Koop, Kristel Treinbuk, Sille Reinsalu, Marija Eroshkina. Teacher Alla Yakubova / Nomad Vocals: Eero Lahtinen, Emma Jämsen, Joel Alve, Joona Rytkönen, Juulia Karppi, Kasper Korhonen, Linda Pennström, Matleena Vuori, Sakari Siira, Tatu Huotarinen, Emma Pitkänen, Lasse Kettunen, Tiina Leskinen, Siiri Lautamies, Anna Voutilainen, Jaakko Örmälä, Heta Ikonen, Tiila Vuori, Eevi Kortelainen, Reetta Karhunen, Ville Hämäläinen & Jutta Korhonen.

UNFOLDING AND REFOLDING @ KOGO GALLERY, APARAADITEHAS, TARTU, ESTONIA. 9.9. – 5.11.2022

Artists: Jaakko Autio, Riikka Keränen / Curator: Mirjami Schuppert (Titanik) – Kogo Gallery in collaboration with Titanik gallery / Kogo Founder & Director: Liina Raus / Art technician (Kogo): Urmo Teekivi / Thank you: Lotta Anttila, Ingred Grigor, Tanel Asmer & Eimar Prommik / The installation is made as collaboration with four choirs: Nomad Vocals Choir (FI), Narva Estonian language house Tandem choir (EE), Narva museum folk ensemble “Suprjadki” (EE) and Narva music school girls choir (EE) / Music composer: Jussi Mattila (Original “Maamme laulu/Mu Isamaa by Fredrik Pacius 1847) / The work is a comission from Titanik gallery / The exhibition was supported by the Estonian Cultural endowment, the city of Tartu, The Finnish institute and Frame contemporary Art Finland.

I should say that when your exhibition was in Tartu I spent a lot of time by the water, looking at the waves and being hypnotised by the sound. I still think your work is one of the most powerful experiences I have ever had in art exhibition. Then in the end when I came to your artist talk it grew even deeper. You have so much meaning and feeling in your work that it is impossible to put it in words. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts.

– Visitors feedback ♡

EXHIBITION TEXT

The exhibition Unfolding and Refolding, features new commissions by two Finnish artists, Jaakko Autio and Riikka Keränen. It examines how the past lingers on in the present, how the presence we experience is impacted by our past experiences. We, or rather, our bodies, carry both sensuous and non-sensuous traces of the past, these are present not only as a form of remembrance, but as embodied memories. Our lived experiences are ingrained in ourselves, making us carry the past in our bodies. Through the embodied memory, there is a presence of different temporalities in one place and space simultaneously and cannot be separated; this day and time is part of a continuum that forms history.

During his residency in Narva, Estonia, Jaakko Autio recorded local choirs singing the Estonian national anthem Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm (also the national anthem of Finland, where it is titled Maamme laulu). In Autio’s work, the singers’ voices, recorded individually, come together in a multichannel installation. Through the playing of the recordings, where each singers’ voice mixes and mingles, the lyrics and melody become indecipherable in the space. The work creates a space in which the multiplicity of perception is foregrounded, and different temporalities are present all at once. Our experience of the present becomes manifold and resists definition.

The installation is made as collaboration with four choirs: Narva music school girls choir (EE), Narva Estonian language house Tandem choir (EE), Narva museum folk ensemble “Suprjadki” (EE) and Nomad Vocals Choir (FI) / Music composer: Jussi Mattila (Original “Maamme laulu/Mu Isamaa by Fredrik Pacius 1847).

In addition, Jaakko Autio built a separate seven-channel sound installation at the entrance of the Aparaaditehas (Kastani 42). The installation features an improvisational song by Narva music school girls choir (EE). The same singers can be heard on the larger installation at Kogo gallery. The installation is running from 7:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. 9 September to 5 November 2022.

Keränen’s mischievous-looking objects are shaped by the artist’s immediate relationship to various natural materials, such as hay, sand and clay. The works find their form in the artist’s hands – they are moulded by her physical presence in relation to the material, listening to their needs and inspired by the way living organisms grow. The shapes stretch and sprawl on surfaces, lingering on and not hurrying toward a form. Their raw material presence resists defined objecthood and becoming finite. Keränen’s works negotiate a space for themselves in relation to both Autio’s installation as well as the white cube of the gallery, building up in the crevices like fungi. Through Keränen’s work the nooks and crannies become visible, they create a presence for those elements of the interior that are always there, but never noticed.

The exhibition found its inspiration from Kogo’s theme for 2022 “Past is the Present”, which refers to how certain events and experiences are carried from the past into the present. Pastness is a current running through the present; the past impacts on how certain events unfold in the present. It is always there, lingering, just like the present we now experience folds into the future.

The exhibition is a result of a collaboration between Titanik, a Finnish contemporary art gallery located in Turku and Kogo, exchanging their exhibition projects this year to bring Finnish artists to Tartu, Estonia and Baltic artists to Turku, Finland.

Singers in the installation: Супрядки” на записи 1 мая 2022: Марина Кувайцева, Marina Kuvaitseva Галина Быстрова, Galina Bõstrova Ирина Воробьева, Irina Vorobjova Мария Изюмова, Maria Izjumova Татьяна Климина, Tatjana Klimina Римма Матвеева, Rimma Matvejeva Ольга Сергеева, Olga Sergejeva Елена Юркевич, Jelena Jurkevitš Олег Кашин, Oleg Kašin Степан Пидвысоцкий, Stepan Pidvysotskiy Владимир Чердаков, Vladimir Tšerdakov / Narva music school Ensemble «Yakub-bend-A»: Alissa Milovidova, Valentina Starodubtseva, Evelina Koop, Kristel Treinbuk, Sille Reinsalu, Marija Eroshkina. Teacher Alla Yakubova / Nomad Vocals: Eero Lahtinen, Emma Jämsen, Joel Alve, Joona Rytkönen, Juulia Karppi, Kasper Korhonen, Linda Pennström, Matleena Vuori, Sakari Siira, Tatu Huotarinen, Emma Pitkänen, Lasse Kettunen, Tiina Leskinen, Siiri Lautamies, Anna Voutilainen, Jaakko Örmälä, Heta Ikonen, Tiila Vuori, Eevi Kortelainen, Reetta Karhunen, Ville Hämäläinen & Jutta Korhonen / Producers (NART): Johanna Rannula (director of NART) & Aleksei Ivanov / Light designer: Pasi Pehkonen / Images: Jaakko Autio / Installing helpers: Anton Kolpakov, Sasha Ulaev, Semjon Krasulin, Диана Харламова, Vasilii Beliakov, Oleg Trofimovä, Liselotte Carmelino, Diana Anastasia Savinskaya, Artem Nikolajenko, Dmitri Tee, Anastassia Zujeva, Andrei Smirnov/ Special thanks: Hilla Väyrynen, Satu Järvinen, Maritta Manner, Mirjami Schuppert / The work is supported by SKR, Taike and Titanik gallery.

ARTISTS’ BIOS

Jaakko Autio is a sound artist based in Helsinki. Autio was born in Finland, but moved to Senegal as a child (4–11). After spending his childhood in Senegal, the return to Finland was marked by being an outsider. These events gave rise to the core of Autio’s works today – How do we connect to the world and others in a meaningful way? Autio´s works are multichannel and immersive sound installations where the visitor can rest and sink into an aesthetic experience. Safety and rest serve as a starting point from where one can reflect on his/her persolan belonging to the world.

Riikka Keränen is a visual artist and mixed worker from Ristijärvi in the Kainuu region of Finland. She graduated with a degree in sculpture from the Kankaanpää School of Fine Art in 2010. Keränen’s work involves playing and thinking in dialogue with the entire spectrum of the world’s materials. Through her work, the artist reflects upon the entangled nature of human and other-than-human worlds.

www.riikkakeranen.com

https://www.instagram.com/r_i_i_k_k_a_k

Mirjami Schuppert (Finland/Germany) is a teacher, curator, and director of Titanik Gallery and Arte Artists´Association in Turku, Finland. She has completed BA and MA in Cultural History, followed by a practice-based PhD in curating at Ulster Univercity. Since 2010, she has been working as an independentcurator delivering numerous exhibitions in Finland, Germany, Northern Ireland, at both galleries and museums. The focus of Schuppert´s curatorial practice is comissioning new context- and site-specific works.

On the Border (Chapter II) / RAJALLA / НА ГРАНИЦЕ @ NART GALLERY 22.6-14.8.2022

Jaakko Autio’s sound installation “On The Border” – Chapter Two / This is the second version of the installation “On The Border”. This time the installation is setup in NART gallery (Joala 18) in Narva. The installation is a multimedia installation that consists of 40 speakers, one 200cm wide waterspeaker and two video projections. The installation is made as collaboration with four choirs: Narva music school girls choir (EE), Narva Estonian language house Tandem choir (EE), Narva museum folk ensemble “Suprjadki” (EE) and Nomad Vocals Choir (FI) / Music composer: Jussi Mattila (Original “Maamme laulu/Mu Isamaa by Fredrik Pacius 1847)

Singers in the installation: Супрядки” на записи 1 мая 2022: Марина Кувайцева, Marina Kuvaitseva Галина Быстрова, Galina Bõstrova Ирина Воробьева, Irina Vorobjova Мария Изюмова, Maria Izjumova Татьяна Климина, Tatjana Klimina Римма Матвеева, Rimma Matvejeva Ольга Сергеева, Olga Sergejeva Елена Юркевич, Jelena Jurkevitš Олег Кашин, Oleg Kašin Степан Пидвысоцкий, Stepan Pidvysotskiy Владимир Чердаков, Vladimir Tšerdakov / Narva music school Ensemble «Yakub-bend-A»: Alissa Milovidova, Valentina Starodubtseva, Evelina Koop, Kristel Treinbuk, Sille Reinsalu, Marija Eroshkina. Teacher Alla Yakubova / Nomad Vocals: Eero Lahtinen, Emma Jämsen, Joel Alve, Joona Rytkönen, Juulia Karppi, Kasper Korhonen, Linda Pennström, Matleena Vuori, Sakari Siira, Tatu Huotarinen, Emma Pitkänen, Lasse Kettunen, Tiina Leskinen, Siiri Lautamies, Anna Voutilainen, Jaakko Örmälä, Heta Ikonen, Tiila Vuori, Eevi Kortelainen, Reetta Karhunen, Ville Hämäläinen & Jutta Korhonen / Producers (NART): Johanna Rannula (director of NART) & Aleksei Ivanov / Light designer: Pasi Pehkonen / Images: Jaakko Autio / Installing helpers: Anton Kolpakov, Sasha Ulaev, Semjon Krasulin, Диана Харламова, Vasilii Beliakov, Oleg Trofimovä, Liselotte Carmelino, Diana Anastasia Savinskaya, Artem Nikolajenko, Dmitri Tee, Anastassia Zujeva, Andrei Smirnov/ Special thanks: Hilla Väyrynen, Satu Järvinen, Maritta Manner, Mirjami Schuppert / The work is supported by SKR, Taike and Titanik gallery.

ON THE BORDER (CHAPTER I) / RAJALLA / НА ГРАНИЦЕ – KREENHOLM @ TALLINN MUSIC WEEK 6-8.5.2022

Sound Artist: Jaakko Autio / Singers in the installation: Супрядки” на записи 1 мая 2022: Марина Кувайцева / Marina Kuvaitseva Галина Быстрова / Galina Bõstrova Ирина Воробьева /Irina Vorobjova Мария Изюмова / Maria Izjumova Татьяна Климина / Tatjana Klimina Римма Матвеева / Rimma Matvejeva Ольга Сергеева / Olga Sergejeva Елена Юркевич / Jelena Jurkevitš Олег Кашин / Oleg Kašin Степан Пидвысоцкий / Stepan Pidvysotskiy Владимир Чердаков / Vladimir Tšerdakov. Narva music school. Ensemble «Yakub-bend-A».  Participants:  Alissa Milovidova, Valentina Starodubtseva, Evelina Koop, Kristel Treinbuk, Sille Reinsalu, Marija Eroshkina. Teacher Alla Yakubova / Nomad Vocals: Eero Lahtinen, Emma Jämsen, Joel Alve, Joona Rytkönen, Juulia Karppi, Kasper Korhonen, Linda Pennström, Matleena Vuori, Sakari Siira, Tatu Huotarinen, Emma Pitkänen, Lasse Kettunen, Tiina Leskinen, Siiri Lautamies, Anna Voutilainen, Jaakko Örmälä, Heta Ikonen, Tiila Vuori, Eevi Kortelainen, Reetta Karhunen, Ville Hämäläinen & Jutta Korhonen / Producers (NART): Johanna Rannula (director of NART) & Aleksei Ivanov / Installing helpers: Vasilii Beliakov, Oleg Trofimovä, Anastasia Savinskaya & Artem Nikolajenko / Special thanks: Maritta Manner / The work is supported by SKR, Taike and Titanik gallery / More information at: https://tmw.ee/ https://www.nart.ee/en/

Jaakko Autio’s sound composition “Rajalla / On The Border” had its premiere at Kreenholm, Narva, on May 6-8, 2022. The piece is a collaboration with four choirs: Narva Music School Girls’ Choir, Narva Estonian-Russian Tandem Choir, Narva Museum Folk Music Group “Suprjadki” (EE), and Nomad Vocals Choir (FI). The music for the composition was composed by Jussi Mattila, who utilized the melody of the original Finnish national anthem “Maamme laulu / Mu Isamaa,” composed by Fredrik Pacius in 1847.

The title of the work, “Rajalla / On The Border,” refers both to the border between Estonia and Russia and the interface and encounter between people. In this work, we step beyond the boundaries into an aesthetic experience.

Through this piece, Autio invites the audience to contemplate the question “Who am I?” in a world divided by the impact of geopolitics. The work was born on the border between Russia and Estonia in Narva, where Autio spent a three-month residency at NART. Narva is the most Russian city in Europe, with 96% of the population speaking Russian. Although the geographical border separates Russia and Estonia, the local identity is a mix of both cultures and self-created Narvaness.

I hope that this piece, on a deeper level, touches upon human identity and stimulates thoughts. I invite the audience to momentarily step out of time and into timelessness, where we can remember what it feels like to merge together without the polarization generated by opposing narratives. “Rajalla / On The Border” conveys hope that we can build bridges between people and find a common understanding that transcends borders and reminds us that we are all part of the same human experience. We all have shared experiences and aspirations.

Jaakko Autio

In “Rajalla / On The Border,” 40 singers sing, breathe, and speak together. The singers represent Finns, Estonians, and Estonian Russians. The composition incorporates clusters of melodies from the Finnish and Estonian national anthems, “Maamme laulu” and “Mu Isamaa,” which unite us in Finland and Estonia. The visitor can listen to each singer’s individual voice, breath, and singing separately or experience the choir as a whole. The timeliness of “Rajalla / On The Border” lies in its ability to provide a space and moment where we can look beyond borders and explore identity, understanding, and belonging in a world that needs more mutual understanding, cooperation, and hope.

Jaakko Aution ääniteos “Rajalla / On The Border” sai ensi-esityksensä Kreenholmissa, Narvassa 6.-8.5.2022. Teos on yhteistyö neljän kuoron kanssa: Narvan musiikkikoulun tyttökuoro, Narvan Viron- ja venäjänkielinen Tandem-kuoro, Narvan museon kansanmusiikkiryhmä “Suprjadki” (EE) ja Nomad Vocals -kuoro (FI). Teoksen musiikin on säveltänyt Jussi Mattila, joka on hyödyntänyt Fredrik Paciuksen vuonna 1847 säveltämän alkuperäisen “Maamme laulu / Mu Isamaa” -kappaleen melodiaa.

“Rajalla / On The Border” -teoksen nimi viittaa sekä Viro-Venäjä-rajaan että ihmisten väliseen rajapintaan ja kohtaamiseen. Tässä teoksessa astumme yli rajojen esteettiseen elämykseen.

Teoksella Autio kutsuu vierailijaa pohtimaan kysymystä “Kuka minä olen?” maailmassa, joka on jakautunut geopolitiikan vaikutuksesta. Teos syntyi Venäjän ja Viron rajalla Narvassa, kun Autio vietti kolmen kuukauden residenssijaksoa NART:ssa. Narva on Euroopan venäläisin kaupunki, jossa 96% väestöstä puhuu venäjää. Vaikka maantieteellinen raja erottaa Venäjän ja Viron, paikallisten identiteetti on sekoitus molempia kulttuureja sekä itse luotua Narvalaisuutta. 

Toivon, että tämä teos syvemmältä tasoltaan koskettaa ihmisen identiteettiä ja herättää ajatuksia. Kutsun vierailijaa hetkellisesti astumaan ulos ajasta ja ajattomuuteen, jossa voimme muistaa, miltä tuntuu sulautua yhteen ilman vastakkaisista narratiiveista syntyvää polarisaatiota. “Rajalla / On The Border” välittää toivoa, että voimme rakentaa siltoja ihmisten välille ja löytää yhteisen ymmärryksen, joka ylittää rajat ja muistuttaa meitä siitä, että olemme kaikki osa samaa inhimillistä kokemusta. Meillä kaikilla on yhteisiä kokemuksia ja toiveita.

Jaakko Autio

“Rajalla / On The Border” -teoksessa 40 laulajaa laulaa, hengittää ja puhuu yhdessä. Laulajat edustavat suomalaisia, virolaisia ja viron venäläisiä. Teoksessa käytetään klustereita Suomen ja Viron kansallislaulujen melodioista, “Maamme laulusta” ja “Mu Isamaasta”, jotka yhdistävät meitä Suomessa ja Virossa. Vierailija voi kuunnella jokaisen laulajan yksilöllistä ääntä, hengitystä ja laulua erikseen tai kokea kuoron kokonaisuutena. “Rajalla / On The Border” -teoksen ajankohtaisuus kiteytyy sen kyvyssä tarjota tila ja hetki, jossa voimme katsoa yli rajojen ja tutkia identiteettiä, ymmärrystä ja yhteenkuuluvuutta maailmassa, joka kaipaa enemmän yhteisymmärrystä, yhteistyötä ja toivoa.

///

Photos by: Jelizaveta Kuznetsova (http://onlooker.photo/)

Jaakko Autio heli-installatsioon “On the Border / Rajalla / На границе” Kreenholmi tehases

NARTi kunstiresidendi Jaakko Autio loodud installatsioon on tehtud koostöös erinevate Narva ja ühe soome kooriga. Kreenholmi saali loodud teose kogemiseks läheb külastaja pea 40 kõlari vahele jalutama, saab kuulata igat häält eraldi ja kogeda nende hingamist ja suhtlemist. Helimaastrik on inspireeritud Paciuse viisist, mis on nii Eesti kui ka Soome hümniks, ning tõstatab küsimusi identiteedist, rahvustest ja inimestevahelisest ruumist. Publik juhatatakse installatsiooni juurde Kreenholmi väravast ja laupäeva õhtul Station Narva kontserdilt. Tallinn-Narva Music Week’il on teos esmakordselt publikule avatud, hiljem rändab ta Narva kunstiresidentuuri, siis Tartusse Kogo galeriisse ja Porvoo Art Factory’sse.

AVAMINE reedel 6.05 kl 20.30

///

Звуковая инсталляция Яакко Аутио «На границе» на Кренгольме

Место сбора: Joala 23c

Инсталляция «На границе», выполненная арт-резидентом NART Яакко Аутио, была создана в сотрудничестве с различными хорами из Нарвы и одним хором из Финляндии. Чтобы прочувствовать произведение, посетитель проходит между почти 40 динамиками, благодаря чему можно услышать каждый голос отдельно и ощутить дыхание поющего. Звуковой ландшафт вдохновлен Пациусом, который является автором гимнов как Эстонии, так и Финляндии. Работа поднимает вопросы идентичности, национальностях и пространстве между людьми. Публику на инсталляцию проведут от кренгольмских ворот и от места проведения концерта Station Narva, который пройдет в субботу вечером. На Tallinn-Narva Music Week работа впервые будет представлена слушателям, позже инсталляция переместится в Нарвскую арт-резиденцию, затем в галерею Kogo в Тарту, а в итоге она окажется в Porvoo Art Factory в Порвоо.

ОТКРЫТИЕ в пятницу 06.05, в 20.30