Ståle Kleiberg’s concerts unfold in the tension between poetry, passion and playfulness. It is contemporary music with which listeners can easily identify, but which does not for a moment compromise the artistic quality. “I try to shape musical expression to match my life experience, or in other words, to shape it to match my idea of what it means to be human,” Kleiberg says of himself and his music.

When the pandemic hit the world with full force in 2020, preparations for this album had already been underway for some time. A recording involving a symphony orchestra and three soloists can hardly be arranged on a Monday and realized on a Tuesday – to put it mildly. There are many pieces of the puzzle that somehow have to find their place. When Norway ceased operations in March 2020, the pieces were ready, contracts and agreements signed, and recording dates booked. We wondered how it would all play out. For a while we even wondered if the recordings could take place at all. Fortunately, the flexibility and willingness of everyone involved to find creative solutions to new problems meant that we were able to complete the task despite all the difficulties. In fact, we experienced a personal presence and greater attention to detail than ever before, as if recording chamber music with the sound palette of an entire orchestra.