UOTINEN MAGNIFIQUE

By Henning Höholt

Fotos: Petri Laitinen

Jorma Uotinen, artistic director of the Kuopio Dance Festival, and an intenationally well known choreographer, ballet chief and dancer, showed an other side of him self on Friday evening. Singing chansons as we are familiar with through the famous stars Marlene Dietrich, Edith Piaf and other.

And Jorma Uotinen did very well. He has a beautiful deep voice, which in these numbers suites the temperature of the songs, and the music perfect. In addition he has the temperature in him self, and the long time being on stage way of behave, which makes this side of him very true. He can continue in this kind of business too.

Splendid supported by Jari Hakkarainen on piano, Petri Ikkelä on banodneon and accordion, these two has also carde in making a lot of the great arrangements of the songs, and Hakkarainen too with some compositions, - one I specially liked the Tango, which is from a collection of 16 numbers composed some years ago. And Helena Paavola beautiful on cello.

The title of this program is Paris, Berlin , Helsinki, and I addition to the numbers by finish compsers, which the finish audience like and love, we too heard, “Ich bin von kopf bis fuss auf Liebe eingestelt”, Marlene Dietrichs famouse number from Die Blaue Angel. “Ich habe einem koffer im Berlin”. And from the Edith Piaf repertoire “La vie en rose”, which was very beautifully performed, perhaps the very highlight in the programme. Splendid followed by:“Non je ne reggete rien, Parlez moi d`amour”. “Les feuilles mortes”.

A great performance of a great star, Jorma Uotinen.