FMQ - Features

Finnish flamenco artists blaze fresh trails

The Helsinki Flamenco Bienal festival is the latest blossoming of Finland’s passion for flamenco, which dates back to the 1960s. The Spanish style continues to inspire original cross-genre work by Finnish artists in its three main areas: guitar, vocals and dance.

Wif Stenger

April 14, 2025

Features

Playlist: New Finnish Choir and Vocal Ensemble Music

‍Finland’s rich choral tradition continues to thrive in diverse forms. While choir albums are recorded less frequently than in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Finnish vocal music still garners international recognition – even earning Grammy Awards. This playlist presents recordings released since 2020.

Santeri Kaipiainen

April 11, 2025

Features

Making the world a better place by singing: Anna-Mari Kähärä and the power of song

Anna-Mari Kähärä is a musical force of nature not afraid to speak her mind. She is a composer, pianist, singer and all-round musician who believes in the power of song.

Amanda Kauranne

April 11, 2025

Features

Life, the universe and everything: The High and Mighty Royal Doomsday Choir of Tampere

A mixed choir exploring the borderlands between musical theatre and multi-discipline art and performing almost exclusively the conceptual-art works of its conductor Petra Poutanen boldly blazes a trail of its own beyond the realm of conventional choral aesthetics.

Santeri Kaipiainen

March 14, 2025

Features

Choral music videos – A new species in the ecological niche of choral albums?

I fire up YouTube and browse through the channels of Finnish choirs. In the past four or five years, I have noticed a new kind of content emerging alongside traditional concert recordings: separately produced, dedicated music videos with visuals that have nothing to do with a concert setting. What are choirs aiming at by producing videos like this?

Sakari Ylivuori

March 7, 2025

Features

Finland in the Global Jazz Economy

This article was originally published in FMQ in 2005. “In an era of complex negotiations of personal and cultural identity, glocalised jazz styles in the broader forum of the global cultural economy are providing a means for musicians around the world to assert their cultural identity within the music”, writes Stuart Nicholson.

Stuart Nicholson

February 14, 2025

Features

Ingeborg Hymander, pioneer of piano pedagogy

Pianists today may not be familiar with Ingeborg Hymander, let alone her importance to the development of the art of the piano in Finland. They should, though. Who was this authority in piano pedagogy who was highly esteemed in her lifetime and whose influence can be felt in Finland and further afield even to this day?

Annikka Konttori-Gustafsson, Matti Huttunen

January 24, 2025

Features

Band in a box: The deep connection between the accordion and the dance floor

Finnish accordion music spans a wide gamut from interpreters of Baroque music to nimble-fingered entertainers to earthy folk musicians. Underlying them all in one way or another is the history of the accordion as an instrument of the common people for dancing.

Santeri Kaipiainen

December 31, 2024

Features

Playlist: Finnish Accordion in the 21st Century

Two-row accordions, concert accordions, quarter tones and live electronics – Finnish accordion artists of our time explore a broad spectrum in their respective genres. Our playlist journeys from traditional music to pop influences, from classical to experimental, and back again.

Santeri Kaipiainen

December 31, 2024

Features

Lost villages, found sounds: Anne-Mari Kivimäki’s accordion trance

What connects an Icelandic rapper, Ukrainian-Polish vocalists, Estonian Eurovision stars, and the forgotten soundscapes of Karelian villages? For the accordionist Anne-Mari Kivimäki, the answer lies in a deep love for collaboration and a constant dialogue between history and innovation.

Wif Stenger

December 20, 2024

Features

From Karelia to the Skolt Sámi Lands: Cross-cultural sharing through music

How can music bridge the divide between two historically intertwined cultures, the Karelians and the Skolt Sámi? This is the question at the heart of the project ‘From Karelia to the Skolt Sámi Lands,’ a multidisciplinary exploration that highlights shared traditions, memories, and a renewed cultural connection.

Saara-Maria Salonen

November 29, 2024

Features

A grand orchestra with rich sounds and spoken word: Sointi Jazz Orchestra’s album release concert in pictures

Sointi Jazz Orchestra was assembled for a composition concert in the autumn of 2013. This collection of photographs features visual highlights of the 18-member orchestra’s album release concert in October 2024 – eleven years after their debut.

Katariina Salmi

October 18, 2024

Features

Playlist: Interfaces with early music in FMQ

This special issue is rich with fascinating examples of the many intersections of early music and early music instruments with other genres and contexts. Our playlist not only offers a convenient cross-section of the music and musicians discussed in the articles but also showcases the versatile contexts in which early music practices and instruments thrive – an aspect explored throughout the issue. Give it a listen!

FMQ

October 4, 2024

Features

The complex and fascinating world of vocals in early music: A discussion between Kari Turunen and Tuuli Lindeberg

What can early music have to offer to the culture of music performances at large that the latter does not already have? Quite a lot, as Vancouver-based choir conductor Kari Turunen and versatile soprano Tuuli Lindeberg discover when talking about performing early music, its special nature and its interfaces.

Kari Turunen

October 4, 2024

Features

Krishna Nagaraja: Finding a home amid polskas, baroque and metal rhythms

An Indian-Italian composer studying Norwegian fiddling in Helsinki? It all comes naturally for Krishna Nagaraja, who traces parallels between far-flung genres, from Ars Subtilior and South Indian Konnakol to Irish folk and progressive metal.

Wif Stenger

September 20, 2024

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Shades of the In-Between: Exploring Musical Boundaries with Aino Peltomaa and Ilkka Heinonen

Aino Peltomaa and Ilkka Heinonen are musicians who excel in the no-man’s-land between genres, organically shaping their music into something that defies labels. With backgrounds in both early and folk music, they challenge rigid expectations and the usual tendency to categorise. In this interview, they explore the power of collective creativity and embracing the unknown.

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

September 13, 2024

Features

From the archives: Immigrant musics and multiculturalism

"In Finland, immigrant and Finnish musicians are slowly but surely creating a new musical culture based on shared experiences", wrote professor Erkki Pekkilä in this article in FMQ from 2002. Multiculturalism is a topic that sparks a lot of discussion in 2024. This article offers a glimpse into the perspective of the early 2000s and reflects Finland as it was twenty years ago.

Erkki Pekkilä

August 30, 2024

Features

The Incredible Sväng Band

One of Europe’s most extraordinary bands, the harmonica quartet Sväng, celebrates 20 years. How did the group convince the world they weren’t just a gimmick, but a musical sensation?

Simon Broughton

August 9, 2024

Features

"Good improvisation is...” – A conversation about improvisation

Folk musician, multidisciplinary improviser and educator Outi Pulkkinen and pianist-composer Kari Ikonen discuss improvisation, its limits and its potential. Both base their work on improvisation, and here they share their thoughts on what good improvisation is, why it is an attractive concept and how you can dispel your fear of failure with it.

Loviisa Pihlakoski

June 27, 2024

Features

From the archives: The Dream Team of Finnish Improvisation

The toughest yet most rewarding of all forms of musical expression, improvisation, has always thrived in Finland. Who knows, maybe the rigours of the freezing dark winter and the joys of the warm midnight sun form mental images that are easily translated into music. As far as the brave musicians adept in this discipline go, this article seeks to separate the wheat from the chaff. This article was originally published in FMQ 1/2003.

Petri Silas

June 27, 2024

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“Improvisation is an act of rebellion”

Classical musicians are rediscovering the long-lost art of improvisation, which has been kept alive in jazz and folk. How does improvisation affect the brains of performers and listeners – and what does it require of each?

Wif Stenger

June 14, 2024

Features

Free steering in coded chaos

Libero Mureddu, who is completing a doctorate at the Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki, creates sonic frameworks that blend algorithmic unexpectancies with collective improvisation. His work is at once art and research, as it focuses on observing the intuitive actions of improvising musicians. What is required for these intuitive actions to blossom in a performance, and how can technology and human musicianship communicate with each other?

Santeri Kaipiainen

June 7, 2024

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Finding your voice in a foreign country

Among Finnish jazz musicians, those who have completed an entire degree abroad remain very much a minority. Yet seeking perspective away from home may help find a voice that can become internationally distinctive. This article features three pianist-composers for whom studying abroad proved to be a meaningful choice.

Santeri Kaipiainen

May 17, 2024

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Tampere Biennale: Approachable musical diversity

The theme of the Tampere Biennale contemporary music festival in April 2024 was ‘Worlds in Metamorphosis’. The event approached the theme through works with a strong societal message, multi-faceted aesthetics, compositional pedagogy and multidisciplinary collaborative projects. The concert programmes were fascinating, and helped the festival reach new audiences.

Hanna Isolammi

May 10, 2024

Features

Rauno Nieminen: Back to the Future

Rauno Nieminen turned the jouhikko and kantele into contemporary marvels. Recently awarded a lifetime achievement for his work, Nieminen’s work isn’t just about instruments – it’s a bridge between eras. In this article, Nieminen unveils the unexpected convergence of the old and new in the world of folk music.

Simon Broughton

April 12, 2024

Features

The Special Feature 1/2024 Editorial: Crossing boundaries with children’s music

"This special issue of FMQ allows the vibrancy and joy of children’s music to shine through verbally, visually, and aurally," writes Lasse Lehtonen.

Lasse Lehtonen

March 28, 2024

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Interfacing with children’s culture: Views by a composer and an author

Composer Anna Nora and author Timo Parvela discuss culture meant for children and the interfaces between music and literature. Both have had to come to terms with the field in which they work, its practicalities and its public perception. What does it take to create music and literature for children – and why does this field of culture gain so little media attention compared with many others?

Anna Nora

March 28, 2024

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Experiencing inclusion and imagining futures in and through music education

Many of us recognise the experience of music opening completely new worlds, generating feelings and imagining beyond the everyday. These experiences may be our companions throughout life, but for children, this playful approach to the world and its wonders is fundamental. Unfortunately, the gate to musical worlds may not always be open. This article explores the meanings and relevance of music-related activities in our lives, beginning in early childhood. How can we open up these activities and experiences to everyone, preferably from an early age?

Laura Huhtinen-Hildén

March 28, 2024

Features

From the archives: Music for children in Finland – A short history

Children’s music boasts a surprisingly extensive history in Finland. In this article, originally published in FMQ in 2011, Anu Ahola provides an overview of the various phases of children’s music in Finland.

March 28, 2024

Features

Playlist: Classics of children’s music in Finland

On this playlist, Maiju Kopra, President of the Children’s Music Association in Finland, guides us through a selection of classic children’s music.

Maiju Kopra

March 28, 2024

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Embracing versatility: Professionalism and playfulness intersect in Mutaveijarit’s music for children

Formed at the Sibelius Academy ten years ago, Mutaveijarit (Mud Rascals) has nurtured a deep-seated love for children’s music. With their versatile approach to music and commitment to professionalism, they’ve captivated audiences and cooked the finest mud soups with audiences in different ages. The band celebrates their 10th anniversary in 2024.

Julius Töyrylä

March 22, 2024

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WolofMuskari – Finnish music education in the Wolof language

Music playschool, or “muskari” in Finnish, is an iconic element of the Finnish music education system, and the most popular pastime for children under school age in Finland. Technically, it is goal-oriented music-based early childhood education that provides developmental support by means of music. But does this Finnish concept translate into other cultures? Oh yes! This article tells the story of WolofMuskari, a music playschool that merges Finnish music education with the all-encompassing music-making typical of West African cultures.

Marjo Smolander

March 15, 2024

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In a Vortex of Sounds: Visual Highlights from Sibafest

Sibafest, an open-door event showcasing various artistic activities, education, and research conducted at the Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki, was held in late January. The event, which celebrated its tenth anniversary, comprised concerts, engaging workshops, inspiring talks, and fascinating teaching demonstrations. As this collection of photographs demonstrates, classical repertoire and contemporary sounds took myriad fascinating and colourful forms.

Julius Töyrylä

March 1, 2024

Features

Contemporary music does not scare off Finnish choirs

Finland’s choral scene is vibrant, and its professional side has further solidified in recent years. It is important for amateur and professional choirs alike to move with the times by creating new choral repertoire and providing opportunities for composers to make discoveries with the choral instrument. Recent developments have brought the choral scene to a turning point.

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

February 16, 2024

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Dialogues with Noh theatre – Experiences of a stage director

Japanese Noh, a form of musical theatre codified in the early 15th century, has been transmitted to us from that age through an uninterrupted tradition. It is now universally recognised as an exceptional artistic treasure, inscribed on UNESCO’s Lists of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In this essay, stage director Aleksi Barrière reflects on his experiences with and thoughts about Western works inspired by and based on Noh theatre.

Aleksi Barrière

February 9, 2024

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Touching the void with Selma Savolainen

Amidst a global pandemic, jazz vocalist and composer Selma Savolainen (b. 1993) found herself gazing into the abyss. The full stop brought about by the surrounding conditions manifested itself as one-sided conversations with Savolainen’s father, who had passed away in 2009. The musical and artistic testimony of her personal road to restorative healing is documented in a beautiful way in the latest work of her new ensemble, the self-titled album Horror Vacui.

Eero Koski

January 26, 2024

Features

Currents of different sounds: Virta at the We Jazz Festival

In Virta’s music, one can discover a captivating vortex of traditional jazz, electronic soundscapes and skilful musical craftsmanship. This photo feature showcases their performance in Helsinki from December 2023.

Julius Töyrylä

January 12, 2024

Features

Hark! now we hear it: One of the world’s largest concert hall organs inaugurated in Helsinki

One of the world’s largest concert hall organs was inaugurated in the main concert hall of the Music Centre in Helsinki at the New Year. Organist Jan Lehtola has been curating the process from the first beginnings of the project to the final test performances. He has seen to it that the wishes of the headline donor, composer Kaija Saariaho, were implemented in the best possible way. So what was the process like, from planning to finally playing this grand instrument?

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

January 5, 2024

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AI: Disrupting bonds between music, artists and audiences

How is AI impacting the music industry? Three experts from Finland tell us it will shake our fundamental assumptions about artists’ identities, their unique creative visions and relationships with listeners.

Wif Stenger

December 22, 2023

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Artificial intelligence in art is both assistive and destructive: A discussion about music and literature

Ano Sirppiniemi (Senior Advisor, Technology and Foresight at the Finnish performance rights organization Teosto) and Ville Hytönen (Chair of the Union of Finnish Writers) met and talked about the opportunities offered and threats posed by artificial intelligence in the spheres of music and literature. Sirppiniemi is involved in AI adoption at Teosto, as well as evaluating the impact of AI on music authors, publishers, and the music industry as a whole, and Hytönen has been actively involved with a similar evaluation in the field of literature. What common topics and concerns do these two fields share, and in what ways do they diverge?

Ano Sirppiniemi

December 22, 2023

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Playlist: Discussing AI-generated classical music with ChatGPT

Have you ever listened to music created by artificial intelligence? Here are some recommendations to explore. These compositions raise intriguing questions: what defines the essence of live performance, contributing to a more human outcome? How might a non-human performance unfold? Will our perception of the music change when we’re aware it was composed by an AI rather than a human? How can we know that these works have been generated by an AI without human intervention?

Lasse Lehtonen

December 22, 2023

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Challenges and opportunities of artificial intelligence in music

The development of artificial intelligence has seen the introduction of several different paradigms, the latest often superseding its predecessor. In the current millennium, the improvements in the accuracy of artificial intelligence applications have rendered them usable for a range of tasks that were previously considered challenging for a machine, such as image and speech recognition.

Otso Björklund

December 15, 2023

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Progressive folk group Vimma – Fighting for the planet’s survival

Combining urgent melodies and fervent activism, Vimma is a progressive Finnish band whose music pulses with a frenzy for change. Their latest album resonates with climate protests and environmental concerns.

Simon Broughton

November 10, 2023

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What did John Cage really teach in Viitasaari?

Summer 2023 marked 40 years since John Cage visited the Time of Music festival in Viitasaari. There are clichéd narratives still circulating about the snapping of twigs, the picking of mushrooms and the sloshing of milk in pails, but what did the guru really say during his masterclass? Composer Juhani Nuorvala participated in the 1983 composition course and has now unearthed his tape recordings of the event. These previously unpublished excerpts offer valuable insights into Cage’s philosophy.

Juhani Nuorvala

October 27, 2023

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Futures thinking as a creativity tool

The importance of creativity in futures thinking and foresight is widely recognised, but conversely the role of futures thinking in creativity is less obvious. Nevertheless, actively thinking about the future holds multiple benefits for all kinds of creative work, and music is no exception.

Riikka Hiltunen

October 20, 2023

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Reader survey – We have launched a survey designed to gauge the interests of our readers

We are currently in the process of developing FMQ in order to better serve our readers. We have now launched a survey designed to gauge the preferences and interests of our readers. Your responses will play a vital role in shaping our future direction, and we would greatly appreciate your collaboration!

FMQ

October 17, 2023

Features

“Subtle is the new fortissimo” – The Superpluck trio pushes timbral and cultural boundaries

Focusing on contemporary music, Superpluck are a trio made up of three plucked instruments. Over the past five years, Rody van Gemert, Eija Kankaanranta and Assi Karttunen have taken aim at prejudiced and established networks in Finland and beyond.

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

October 13, 2023

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The Kantele Day – Dynamic, modern, and persistently national

The first ever Kantele Day was celebrated in Finland on Saturday 16 September 2023. The celebrations – including a flash mob, concerts and gala – were organised by the Kantele Association, a community for amateur and professional kantele players and anyone else interested in the instrument. What is the status of the kantele in today’s Finland?

Heidi Henriikka Mäkelä

October 4, 2023

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Funeral music as a profession – “Grief is a sign of love”

When the phone rings, church musician Hanna Seppänen answers and listens attentively. Experience has taught her to identify the stage of the caller’s grieving process. Sensitivity is required. Seppänen listens to the caller’s wishes and considers how to best respond to them. Seppänen’s job description is quite exceptional: she works as a funeral musician.

Loviisa Pihlakoski

September 29, 2023

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Interpreters of grief

Can music engender sorrow or comfort? Is there (a) space for grief? Emmi Kuittinen, who delves into the world of traditional laments and folk poetry for inspiration, and musician/scholar Astrid Swan, who studies grief as a personal and a transgenerational phenomenon, make music out of grief that is not as sad as one might expect.

Amanda Kauranne

September 29, 2023

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And ink the silence – Saariaho’s HUSH given a world premiere of flickering intensity at the Helsinki Festival

Kaija Saariaho’s last work, trumpet concerto HUSH, was premiered by jazz trumpetist Verneri Pohjola and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in late August 2023. “Living and breathing together throughout the 65e-page score, the musicians and the fully packed audience were joined in musical ritual of rare depth and transformative beauty”, writes Jari Kallio.

Jari Kallio

September 22, 2023

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Bidding farewell with music - Hospice care in the United States

Music can help both terminal patients and their family members in the process of saying goodbye. This is well known to Emma von Weissenberg, a Finnish music therapist who studied in the USA and used to work with patients in hospice care.

Patrik Stenström

September 15, 2023

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Saxophonist Linda Fredriksson: No Categories

Linda Fredriksson aims to avoid pigeonholes in music – and life.

Wif Stenger

September 1, 2023

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Snapshots from Finnish summer festivals

Finland is renowned for its summer festivals held across the country. Our snapshots offer a glimpse into the highlights of this year’s festivals.

FMQ

August 25, 2023

Features

Improvised life: Guitarist Héctor Lepe’s odyssey from Mexico to Sibelius Academy

Guitarist Héctor Lepe has improvised his way from the jazz bars of Mexico City to a master’s degree from Sibelius Academy and a debut album on a Finnish label – just one of a growing number of musicians from around the world who are enlivening the once-insular Finnish jazz scene.

Wif Stenger

August 18, 2023

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Finnish composers remember Kaija Saariaho (1952–2023)

In this article, fellow composers reminisce about the late Kaija Saariaho as a person and artist.

Lasse Lehtonen

June 21, 2023

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Playlist: Video game music from Finland

This playlist highlights the work of composers, arrangers and performers of video game music in Finland. Our list boasts a selection of addictive sounds from epic orchestral textures to quirky technopop and tunes that make you want to dance. How about next trying them as part of a gaming experience?

FMQ

June 15, 2023

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Let’s play GAMEM – Research project explores the significance of game music in everyday life

Game Music Everyday Memories, or GAMEM, is a research project undertaken at the University of Jyväskylä in 2020-2022. Funded by the Kone Foundation, the project examined people’s fondest and most lasting game music memories from a range of different perspectives, and the effect of these memories in their everyday life. The research results indicate that the impact of game music is significant.

Elina Lajunen

June 15, 2023

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Game Music Collective: Redefining concert culture

September 2017, Finlandia Hall. One of Finland’s most iconic concert halls hosts an orchestral concert with a full audience that is decidedly younger than average. That’s thanks to the programme, which features music composed for video games. As thousands rise for a standing ovation for the Game Music Collective, the atmosphere is electric: something new has been born.

Janne Sala

June 15, 2023

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Salla Hakkola and Ari Pulkkinen: Conversation between two game music composers

Salla Hakkola and Ari Pulkkinen exchange thoughts and experiences on creating game music. Each having won several international awards, they have made music for the global superhit game Angry Birds and are among the top names in Finnish game music. What does it take to write game music – and what is the state of the genre in Finland today?

FMQ

June 15, 2023

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What Makes a Music Festival Theme?

A carefully considered theme makes a music festival more than a sum of its parts, and a theme can operate on many practical levels: as a loose headline, a source of inspiration for planning, a spark to get the audience interested, or a narrative thread reaching to each detail. Heads of six Finnish festivals talk about their themes for this summer.

Harri Kuusisaari

May 31, 2023

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Four electric guitars boldly going where no music has gone before

If Sähkökitarakvartetti were a room, it would have no walls, and you would have to check your titles, hierarchies and genres at the door. This is a space which many contemporary composers would like to enter.

Elina Roms

May 12, 2023

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Kantele player Hanna Ryynänen – A Journey to Get to Know Myself

As she releases her debut solo album, kantele player Hanna Ryynänen takes us into her personal musical world.

Simon Broughton

May 5, 2023

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Northern Connection – Nordic cooperation to combat throwaway compositions and touring emissions

Northern Connection is a project that brings together composers, ensembles and festivals, energises contemporary music communities and provides solutions to the conundrum of the ‘farewell premiere’ while also seeking to reduce emissions from international touring. While this cooperation is rooted in the concept of the northern identity, it is hoped that the best practices established will find more widespread application.

Hanna Isolammi

April 27, 2023

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A guide to the Finnish contemporary music scene

Are you new to Finland and a friend of contemporary art music but do not know where to look for concerts in this field? Then this article is exactly what you have been looking for! Composer Cecilia Damström introduces readers to the contemporary music scene in Finland and gives tips on how to look up concerts, festivals and more.

Cecilia Damström

April 20, 2023

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Helsinki jazz-folk quartet Barlast tours Japan: Chopstick guitar, taco rice and attentive audiences

Helsinki-based quartet Barlast, formed in 2016, has won over audiences with their expressive blend of Nordic folk and jazz, where free improvisation plays a significant role. After performing in Estonia, Norway and Hungary, they recently embarked on their debut tour of Japan. Due to the pandemic, the tour had to be rescheduled and delayed for several years. This photo feature highlights their fourth concert in Tokyo, part of a seven-city tour in March 2023.

Julius Johansson

March 30, 2023

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Playlist: Music from and about Japan and Finland

This Special Feature introduces several musicians and composers who have contributed to the musical connection between Japan and Finland. Our playlist highlights these connections between the two countries, focusing on musicians and composers discussed in this Special Feature, as well as some other works of contemporary music.

Lasse Lehtonen

March 30, 2023

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“Melody and melancholy in suitable doses” – Finnish heavyrock is “BIG IN JAPAN“

From the Archives: Hanoi Rocks, Children Of Bodom, Sonata Arctica, Stratovarius, Negative, Amorphis, The 69 Eyes, Twilightning, Dreamtale... Finnish heavy rock and heavy metal acts have for years enjoyed great success in the Japanese market. But why Finnish music in particular, and why Japan of all places? What sort of figures and what sort of market are we talking about here? This article is originally published in 2004.

Timo Isoaho

March 30, 2023

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Eva Alkula and Tomoya Nakai – A genuine interest in someone else’s culture is the best starting point for collaboration

As the saying goes, “sometimes you have to travel far to see what is near”. Finnish kantele artist Eva Alkula and Japanese koto artist Tomoya Nakai have performed as a duo for nearly two decades. Their collaboration crystallises each artist’s identity as a musician and enables the birth of something new. The unique union of the distinct timbres of the kantele and the koto is “a match made in heaven”, even if the physical distance between Tokyo and Tampere remains 7,843 kilometres.

Elina Roms

March 30, 2023

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Izumi Tateno and Seppo Kimanen – dialogue between a Japanese pianist and a Finnish cellist

“This was a pianist of a calibre that I had not yet encountered in Finland,” recalls Seppo Kimanen – cellist, non-fiction author and founder of the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival – thinking back to his first meeting with pianist Izumi Tateno, who divides his time between Japan and Finland.

Seppo Kimanen

March 30, 2023

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Composer Toshi Ichiyanagi (1933–2022): “Being in Finland calms my mind”

Toshi Ichiyanagi, who passed away in October 2022, was one of the most influential and internationally acclaimed Japanese composers of contemporary music. Possibly somewhat less known is that he also had a strong connection to Finland. As the founder and chair of the Japan Finland Contemporary Music Society, Ichiyanagi became a focal figure in fostering musical exchange and collaboration between the two countries. In this interview, conducted in Tokyo in 2018, Ichiyanagi talks about the contemporary music scene in Japan, the importance of cross-cultural collaboration – and his appreciation of Finnish cultural life.

Lasse Lehtonen

March 29, 2023

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Violinist Pekka Kuusisto and snowboarder Enni Rukajärvi – a conversation about music, sports and competition

Loviisa Pihlakoski

February 14, 2023

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Music and Nationality – Who is a Finnish Composer?

In this article, originally published in 1988, Ilkka Oramo writes about the national concept in music and asks whether it is possible to adapt the nationalistic view of history to provide the basis for a modern day history of a nation’s music.

Ilkka Oramo

February 10, 2023

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Recreating Yiddish cabaret in Helsinki

The discovery of forgotten archives, musicians from Helsinki, Berlin and New York bring the little-known Yiddish songs of Jac Weinstein to life and shed new light on Helsinki’s Jewish history.

Simon Broughton

February 3, 2023

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The symphonist who broke the glass ceiling – Helvi Leiviskä 120th anniversary at the Kokonainen festival

Helvi Leiviskä wrote monumentally culminating symphonies and influenced numerous Finnish composers. As a theosophist, she wanted her music to reflect her world view and believed in the power of music. Thanks to the efforts of musicians and scholars, she is now attaining the place she deserves in the repertoire of Finnish orchestras, 120 years after her birth.

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

January 27, 2023

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Jazz and the City

Since its launch a decade ago, We Jazz has broken the mould of a traditional festival by spreading into unexpected venues while expanding to become a record company, shop and magazine.

Santeri Kaipiainen

January 20, 2023

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“This is what I’ve been preparing for all my life” – conductor Tarmo Peltokoski

Tarmo Peltokoski made his international breakthrough at the age of 20. Now, two years later, he is making first appearances with orchestras near and far, and he has already been engaged on a regular basis by three European orchestras. He is a high flyer but with a cool head. “I’ve never questioned wanting to become a conductor,” says Peltokoski, whose aim is to specialise in opera.

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

January 11, 2023

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Pianist Kirill Kozlovski and steeplechaser Topi Raitanen – a conversation about competing

Music and sport are, one might imagine, completely separate worlds – but there are surprisingly many similarities between the work of a musician and of an athlete. One of these is the importance of competitions in their careers. Pianist Kirill Kozlovski and steeplechaser Topi Raitanen sat down to talk about the commonalities and differences of music and sports.

Loviisa Pihlakoski

December 28, 2022

Features

Music competitions in Finland: an overview

In 2022, several international competitions as well as annual local ones were organized in Finland. The competition year kicked off with The XII international Jean Sibelius Violin Competition held in Helsinki in May. Take a look at this list compiled by FMQ and get familiar with some of the most well-known Finnish music competitions across genres!

FMQ

December 28, 2022

Features

The musician’s competitive life

Competition is part of the fundamental nature of life, whether we like it or not. Just as animals compete for habitat, food, partners and status in a herd, people vie for study places and jobs, socioeconomic status and in many skill-related sports. Even if it’s not always an actual competition, the mind organises the surrounding world by comparing itself to others. At the same time, however, a significant proportion of the competitions in human life are waged against oneself.

Patrik Stenström

December 26, 2022

Features

Electronic sounds and vintage machines

The University of Helsinki’s Music Research Laboratory & Electronic Music Studio celebrates its 60th anniversary this autumn. Over the decades, it has expanded its activities to become a versatile, wide-ranging music and sound research laboratory.

Kimmo Korhonen

November 17, 2022

Features

The other West Coast: Jussi Fredriksson and the Turku jazz scene

For more than a decade, jazz musician Jussi Fredriksson has played a significant role in building up the Turku jazz scene. The Baltic Archipelago Sea’s environment is featured on his recent solo album, both as a source of inspiration and as a cause for concern.

Santeri Kaipiainen

November 11, 2022

Features

From the Echoes of Dreams: A poem for Kaija Saariaho

FMQ commissioned a poem about Kaija Saariaho's music from Marjo Heiskanen, a poet and pianist. To celebrate this special occasion, we publish the poem, "Kaiunta" (From the Echoes of Dreams) in two languages.

Marjo Heiskanen

October 27, 2022

Features

Playlist: Kaija Saariaho in FMQ

Several works by Kaija Saariaho are mentioned in this Special Feature. Our playlist provides a cross-section of the music discussed in the articles.

FMQ

October 27, 2022

Features

Kaija Saariaho and Olli Virtaperko: A conversation

Composers Kaija Saariaho and Olli Virtaperko sat down to talk about the meaning of art and music. In this dialogue between composers from different generations, fascinating insights into the structures of and changes in writing music and the world of music at large emerged.

Olli Virtaperko

October 27, 2022

Features

Kaija Saariaho, Mater

“With the opening sonority of each of her works, Kaija establishes a vibration that resonates deep inside the listener’s body along with a spectrum of overtones that grow out of that original sonority but that also foreshadow the complex contradictions that compel us to identify with and follow the web she weaves”, writes Susan McClary in her essay about Kaija Saariaho’s work.

Susan McClary

October 27, 2022

Features

“Known to her friends as Kaija”: A musical journey with trusted interpreters

Over the decades, numerous musicians and ensembles around the world have performed the music of Kaija Saariaho. Without long-term relationships with trusted interpreters, the Finnish composer’s music would have travelled quite a different path.

Anu Jormalainen

October 27, 2022

Features

Never too young to study composing

The Society of Finnish Composers aims to beef up basic instruction in composition. The society wants to shake off outdated ideas about composing, expand the job description of the professional composer and focus on the music of the future.

Auli Särkiö-Pitkänen

September 30, 2022

Features

Flight of the Tuba – music for all people everywhere

The ensemble calling itself Tuubakimalainen [Tuba Bumblebee] originated in a simple question voiced over coffee in the basement of the Music Centre in Lahti in 2012: Why don’t all citizens have equal access to cultural services? This led to the idea of a touring orchestra performing music for everyone. The emergent ensemble embarked on a mission to travel around Finland, with special emphasis on the far north.

Julius Töyrylä

September 16, 2022

Features

Time of Music festival celebrates diversity in music

The Time of Music festival built its anniversary festival programme on the theme of diversity. Under the banner ‘Mundi Novi – New Worlds’, the festival showcased ideas and voices that often remain in the shadows.

Ainomaija Pennanen

September 2, 2022

Features

FMQ announces new editorial staff

We warmly welcome the new editorial team for the Fall season 2022.

FMQ

September 1, 2022

Features

Equity or equality?

What concrete actions have been taken to advance equality in the Finnish music industry? How can diversity be promoted? Researcher Heidi Partti, musician-pedagogue Puro Paju, festival director Linda Suolahti and communications head Sanni Kahilainen talk about programming, the possibilities of pedagogy and questioning the prevailing models.

Amanda Kauranne

June 30, 2022

Features

FMQ Playlist: Sámi music

Part of the homeland of the Sámi people is in northern Finland, but the Sámi identity is a global one and is heavily defined by its music. The joik tradition stands apart from mainstream culture, even if expressed in rap or in world music.

Saara-Maria Salonen

June 30, 2022

Features

FMQ Playlist: Finland-Swedish folk music

Swedish native speakers constitute Finland’s culturally most significant minority. Much of Finland’s music has Finland-Swedish roots, the best-known case in point being Jean Sibelius. The strength of these roots can be heard in Finland-Swedish folk music, with its minuets, ballads and regional specialties – a tradition very different from that of Finnish-speaking Finns.

Désirée Saarela

June 30, 2022

Features

Hear us out – playlists with music of Finnish minorities

As in any country on earth, there are multiple music cultures in Finland. Each stems from its own unique tradition and from the identity of its creators, but they are also in touch with the modern world. This playlist compilation focuses on four traditions: Finland-Swedish folk music, Sámi music, Finnish Roma music and Global music in Finland. The playlists were compiled by representatives of the respective cultures.

Anna Dantchev

June 30, 2022

Features

FMQ Playlist: Global music in Finland

Interaction with a remote, northern and structurally strong music culture gives a distinctive tone to the diverse music that musicians from around the world create in Finland. That is why world music born in Finland stands out.

Anna Dantchev

June 30, 2022

Features

The quest for diversity in music

“If we wish to experience music as a genuinely questioning, searching, challenging and revitalising art form, should it not reflect the diversity of the world around it much better?” Kimmo Korhonen interviewed two proponents of diversity and plurality in music: a researcher, Docent Juha Torvinen PhD from the University of Helsinki; and a musician, violinist Linda Suolahti, artistic director of the Musequal festival.

Kimmo Korhonen

June 30, 2022

Features

FMQ Playlist: Finnish Roma songs

The many branches of the Roma people have influenced musical cultures throughout Europe. The voice of Finland's ancient, original Roma minority can be heard especially in the tango and 'iskelmä', but the Roma's own, strong musical tradition has only been brought into mainstream culture in recent years.

Anette Åkerlund

June 30, 2022

Features

How music can repair and boost sense of identity in Sámi culture

The Sámi artists are raising a storm in their local communities. Even though they are not often heard in the mainstream music scene, their importance for the local community is as strong as ever. Generations of Sámi people have had to figure out how to find themselves, how to have that balance between the two cultures – and music is such a helpful tool in this.

Saara-Maria Salonen

June 30, 2022

Features

This should be good: Finland’s weird but wonderful festival summer

"The five festivals listed below should be good, but connoisseurs should take their cue from these as regards what to look for and prepare for more generally in the festival summer."

Kare Eskola

June 27, 2022