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At a wedding party on a summer's evening in Helsinki the bride and groom seem blissfully happy. But a waitress is shocked to see that the bridegroom is the brother of a boy who, 10 years ago, was responsible for the murder of her daughter, nine other students and a teacher when he went on a shooting spree in the international school her daughter attended.

As Kaija Saariaho's Innocence proceeds, the devastating impact of the horrific act unfurls with a terrible resonance, backwards and forwards in time, pivoting around the wedding party of the present and the victims and witnesses of the past.

Rave reviews from stagings in Aix-en-Provence and Helsinki have preceded the eagerly awaited UK premiere production of Kaija Saariaho's latest opera. Tom Service presents this recording made at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.

Kaija Saariaho: Innocence

The Waitress (Tereza) ….. Jenny Carlstedt (mezzo-soprano)
The Mother-in-Law (Patricia) ….. Sandrine Piau (soprano)
The Father-in-Law (Henrik) .... Christopher Purves (baritone)
The Bride (Stela) ….. Lilian Farahani (soprano)
The Bridegroom (Tuomas) ….. Markus Nykänen (tenor)
The Priest ….. Timo Riihonen (bass)
The teacher (Cecilia) ….. Lucy Shelton (soprano)
Student One (Markéta) ….. Vilma Jää (folk singer)
Student Two (Lilly) ….. Beate Mordal (soprano)
Student Three (Iris) ….. Julie Héga (actor)
Student Four (Anton) ….. Simon Kluth (actor)
Student Five (Jerónimo) ….. Camilo Delgado Díaz (tenor)
Student Six (Alexia) ….. Marina Dumont (soprano)

Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
Susanna Malkki (conductor)

Read the full synopsis on the Royal Opera House website: https://bit.ly/3pHY9pf