Stories by

Antye Greie-Ripatti, an artist whose work spans many genres and continents, hosts a sonic experimentation workshop for children in Helsinki in late June. “Listening and sound should be taught at an early age, as well as the creative use of technology – and critical, resistant thinking about it,” she says.

How do musicians and other music professionals in Finland view the future? The outlook for the music industry is sunny but not entirely without clouds, according to the recently conducted Music Industry Barometer study. Although professionals believe firmly in further growth, many are concerned about how current developments will affect their livelihood, particularly the digitisation of recording distribution and the tightening competition.

While music as a profession or hobby is not the worst imaginable environmental polluter, no-one in our time and age can afford to think they are above environmental responsibility. Musicians experience eco-anxiety especially for the amount of travel associated with their profession. What can an individual musician or music consumer do to help the environment, and is it possible to achieve change through music?

Digitisation is progressing everywhere in our society, and the realm of classical and contemporary sheet music is no exception. Software and platforms are being developed for the purpose of replacing printed copies with digital files, and professionals in various fields are collaborating to produce an effective end result. What do musicians think about all this?

Third Practice, a new production by the Tero Saarinen Company in collaboration with the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, is a hybrid artwork exploring change, remembering and forgetting, all to the tune of the music of Claudio Monteverdi.

The first episode of the FMQ Podcast deals with artist residencies. Ivor Stodolsky and Marita Muukkonen from the Artists at Risk institution tell us about their work with artists who have had to flee their home country due to pressing political situations.

One of the international guests at this year’s Time of Music festival in Viitasaari is the music theatre company La Chamber aux échos. Its mission is to explore subtle connections between the various branches of the arts. Co-founder, director-dramaturge Aleksi Barrière considers collaboration with contemporary composers to be a key element in his work. Recently, one of his principal artistic partners has been his mother, composer Kaija Saariaho.

His music is constantly being performed abroad. In Finland, he is known as a composer of choral music and an active singer. Regular readers of FMQ will recognise him as one of our house translators. Jaakko Mäntyjärvi is something of a musical outlier.

As the Mirjam Helin Competition in Helsinki names its winners, what awaits the next generation of singers who are hoping to repeat the success of their forbears – or simply earn a living? We assess their options and opportunities with the help of two established professionals.