Side Roads (2017)

The origins of Side Roads date back to a ‘reverse birthday present’, when Betsy Jolas showed her initial sketches to cellist Anssi Karttunen during the celebrations for his 90th birthday. Commissioned jointly by the Swedish Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestre d’Auvergne, the work was initially conceived as a movement of a triptych. However, over the ten months of the creative process, the piece “grew longer and longer”, eventually becoming a large-scale, self-contained concerto lasting nearly twenty minutes.

The title serves as a metaphor for Jolas’s artistic independence; she avoids the ‘main road’ of rigid musical trends to roam freely through history. The score harmoniously blends advanced modern instrumental techniques with echoes of masters such as Bach and Lassus. Characterised by a “luxury of restraint”, the work reflects Jolas’s unique voice, which is both witty and profound. Whether performed as part of its original cycle or as a standalone piece, Side Roads showcases a composer who moves effortlessly between styles, creating a deeply human dialogue through shifting string textures.

“Side Roads is a uniquely original piece which could not have been written without a knowledge and experience of all currents from the 16th to 21st century." Anssi Karttunen, 2017.