LANA | MUSIC | FESTIVAL 2026 - sOTTO VOCI

The parish church of Niederlana becomes the setting for an exceptional musical encounter created in collaboration with südtirol festival merano . meran. The concert “sOtto Voci” brings together two internationally renowned ensembles: the Finnish string quartet Meta4 and the Danish vocal ensemble Theatre of Voices.

Founded in 2001, Meta4 is among the most successful string quartets from Finland. The ensemble gained international recognition in 2004 when it won first prize at the International Shostakovich Quartet Competition in Moscow, together with a special award for the best interpretation of Shostakovich’s works. In 2007 Meta4 also received the first prize at the International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition in Vienna.

Since then the quartet has performed regularly in major concert halls around the world, including the Wiener Konzerthaus, Wigmore Hall in London, the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, the Cité de la Musique in Paris and the Konserthus in Stockholm. The ensemble has also served as artistic director of the Oulunsalo Music Festival and was quartet in residence for many years at the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival. Their recordings featuring works by Haydn, Shostakovich, Bartók and Sibelius have received wide acclaim.

Joining them is Theatre of Voices, an internationally celebrated Danish vocal ensemble founded in 1990 by the British conductor, singer and author Paul Hillier. With around forty recordings and numerous awards – including a Grammy – the ensemble is widely regarded as one of the leading vocal groups in contemporary music.

The ensemble’s repertoire spans a remarkable range, from the earliest notated music to modern sound art and contemporary opera. Over the years, Theatre of Voices has collaborated with important composers such as Arvo Pärt, Steve Reich, Karlheinz Stockhausen, John Adams, Kaija Saariaho and many others.

In “Sotto Voci”, voices and strings come together in a fascinating musical dialogue. Within the atmospheric space of the church, the purity of the vocal sound and the expressive depth of the string quartet create an immersive listening experience that connects tradition and contemporary musical exploration.