Stories by

Children’s music underwent a huge transition in Finland in the 1960s and 1970s. Composer Pekka Jalkanen witnessed and contributed to this development. In this article from 2011 he discusses the history of Finnish children's music.

"Indeed, it is hard to imagine how Lassy’s quintet could sound any tighter or exuberant as they deliver their well-honed blend of soul jazz, hard bop and Latin jazz."

"Besides being a top-notch player, Patrik Kleemola is a relentless commissioner of new guitar compositions. (-) Otto Tolonen puts premieres and musical short stories aside in favour of two mammoth cornerstone-compositions of contemporary classical guitar."

Multi-instrumentalist Teho Majamäki has spent the past fifteen years collecting musical influences, tunes and sounds on his travels around the world.

Sibelius’s music has, naturally, been a popular topic among Finnish music researchers. Three recent dissertations open new perspectives on the composer’s orchestral and vocal music. We let the new ‘Sibelius doctors’ elaborate on their research.

Laulu', a film directed by Selma Vilhunen, portrays the encounter of people, their life stories, joys and sorrows in the heartland of runo singing.

Raoul Björkenheim is a guitarist and composer in a constant search for new levels of expression. This versatile musician is at home on two continents and in various musical styles. For him, improvisation is a matter of life philosophy and music should have true personal value.

"It is mind-boggling to think just how much Finland and Finnish music have changed over the past 30 years."