1. Girl dressed in muslin (Fanciulla in vestito svolazzante) - There were many assistants in the Rauni Mollberg film, "Friends, comrades", filmed in Kirkenes, who will not necessarily appear in the finished film. One of those was the young woman in a muslin dress who performed tricks. The canon captures her grace.

2. Akiko yksin (Akiko alone) - Another performer cut out of the final version of the Mollberg film was a young Japanese woman, Akiko, who had had her kimono shipped over at great cost from Japan. The bleak winter environment of the Arctic Ocean was hard for her and she felt very homesick. The canon melody captures her sensitivity.

4. La Pieve della Pietra di Bismantova - The extraordinary sheer faced mountain, Pietra di Bismantova, situated in the Reggio province in the Apennine mountains near the town of Castelnovo ne' Monti, was already mentioned by Dante in his Divine Comedy. The ancient chapel of St. Maria rests on the mountainside and inspired the canon, which was originally written to be sung as an Alleluia.

5. Piazza San Prospero, noi tre - The old town centre called Piazza San Prospero in Reggio Emilia is famous for its lion statues. "Noi tre" refers to the composer's family of three, standing in the square.

6. Signor Bellman, suppongo ("Mr. Bellman, I presume?") - When the canon voices increase, C.M.Bellman's famous drinking song, Gubben Noack, gradually becomes audible. Hence the title which, naturally, refers to a very famous encounter in Africa.

7. Hin ist alle meine Kraft - The opening bars of Joseph Haydn's male choir piece, Der Greis (The old man).

9. Idyll am Bachufer - "Idyll by the brook" is based on the familiar theme of the slow movement of J. S. Bach's double violin concerto in d minor.