Matthew Whittall

"Voice of Generations is a mishmash, but also an inspiring example of open-minded repertoire planning."

“Nature exposes the artifice of art, the craftedness of it, the smallness and egotism of it before the vastness of creation. To invoke nature is to admit the wild, the unplanned, into art,” writes composer Matthew Whittall. This column is part of the series, where composers and other music makers write about their music.

This year, the Musica nova Helsinki 2019 festival presented a trans-Atlantic menu. The programme plumbed deep waters and explored lovely landscapes on a sea that knows no bounds. All this begs the question: are we driftwood, or are we actively charting a course to the future?

Musica nova Helsinki, Finland’s largest contemporary music festival, takes place 1-10 February 2019. Here's FMQ's selection of the concerts and events you should not miss!

"Pianist Risto-Matti Marin has formed a meaningful musical whole out of five works, all recorded for the first time, by four contemporary composers living in Finland."

The Helsinki Chamber Choir is one of the best in its kind in the world these days.

"Olli Ahvenlahti’s compositions are mostly mellow and somewhat romantic, as is his playing. The touch has a pleasant singing quality."

Nature is among the most common topics in music of all eras. Matthew Whittall’s nature-composing continues this tradition with strong nostalgic tones.

Matthew Whittall has risen to the elite of Finnish composers. He is inspired by nature and his personal experiences and is not ashamed to admit it. Last winter, his orchestral work Solen was given an interpretation in dance in Ulm, Germany. Next spring, it will be performed in Toronto.

Guitarists are unusually keen to commission new compositions. The guitarist, composer and audience all benefit, because the guitar, being a popular instrument, lowers the threshold to listening to new music. Finnish guitarists Petri Kumela, Otto Tolonen and Patrik Kleemola rank among the most active champions of new guitar repertoire.

The most prolific and most popular opera librettist in Finland today is a writer, poet and musician from Peru: Maritza Núñez. The opera Frida y Diego by Kalevi Aho, commissioned by the Sibelius Academy, is to be premiered at the Helsinki Musiikkitalo in October 2014.