Vocal music was perhaps closest to Paavo Heininen's (1938-2022) heart because of his passion for texts: the marriage of word and music was, in his opinion, something unique, allowing the composer and the poet to express more together than they could ever do alone. Jouluconcertino op. 90 (2002) ("Christmas concertino in Finnish") is set to three poems by Lassi Nummi (1928-2012).