Poetry touches people

A few month ago I wrote about the arts project I was involved in together with composer and pianist Ville Matvejeff. This project combines Kuwaitian poetry from Suad Al Sabah and Finnish music composed by Ville into a work for piano and soprano where the soprano part will be sung by myself.

A week ago we had the first presentation about the project for the press and selected audience in Helsinki. We spoke about the project and people around it. Then we recited the poems.

The cycle is about love (surprise!) or actually it is a love story that begins with a question “I hear a noise – is it love?” and ends in vows “I promise to be the ship of your dreams”. The audience was still as a mouse, listening and experiencing us when we lived through that enchanting story in beautiful poems.

After reciting the last line of the last poem there was a silence one could nearly touch. Then they spoke: “touching, impressive, powerful”. They were astonished how they could see and follow “our love story” so intimately, to see it happen in front of their own eyes.

Art has the power of touching people. It has the power to change the world, to give love a chance.

From Helsinki with Love

Cristina Andersson

Cristina Andersson and Ville Matvejeff in performance in Ainola, the home of Jean Sibelius.