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afore Piano Composed: 2015 Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Piano Duration: 8 minutes Commission / dedications Dedicated to Tuomas Niininen First performance Tuomas Niininen, piano, Concert hall of the Lodz Academy of Music, Lodz, Poland, November 23, 2015 < Back

...and there's always music in the air." Flute and string quartet Composed: 2011 Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Flute and string quartet Duration: 15 minutes Movements I. Shadow of a twisted arm across my house II. Garden in the city of industry III. I see myself Commission / dedications Hommage to David Lynch First performance Johanna Kärkkäinen, flute, Into String Quartet: Linda Suolahti, violin, Sirja Puurtinen, violin, Mari Viluksela, viola, Jarkko Launonen, cello, Ajassa 2011! Festival, Kapsäkki Music Theatre, Helsinki, Finland, March 15, 2011 Composer's Notes March 15, 2011 The immaculately polished façades and the simmering tensions and traumas beneath—sometimes culminating in harrowingly perverse events and devastating human fates triggered by the collapse of those façades—seem to lie at the very core of David Lynch’s (1946-2025) surreal and dreamlike cinematic storytelling. They are the fuel that keeps his creative flame alive. Onto this stage, where the theatre of self-centered—thus deeply human—artificiality and superficial well-being inevitably collides with merciless truth, Lynch casts game pieces in the form of characters that are often absurd and highly stylized. Yet these characters, with painful precision, illuminate the deepest traits of the human condition. Crippled by their own weaknesses, or sometimes crushed by faceless structural violence, they reflect a bleak picture of the society we live in even today. In Lynch’s stark visions, the horror of recognizing—or denying—truth can, at its worst, completely shatter the mind, leaving one lost in the shadows, as happens to Fred in Lost Highway (1996). Often, physical death becomes the only release from pain and hopeless dead ends. “In heaven, everything is fine,” sings a woman in Lynch’s first feature-length film Eraserhead (1976). Similarly, in Mulholland Drive (2001), Diane, overwhelmed by a bleak past and unbearable guilt over a horrifying deed, chooses irreversible detachment from her suffering and burdens. What remains is only eternal peace and silence— silencio . Having followed Lynch’s films, television projects, paintings, photography, writings, and other endeavors since the 1990s, I’ve long been drawn to the idea of exploring the intense thoughts and emotions these works have stirred in me through musical means—not by interpreting, explaining, or deconstructing them, but by creating a kind of “musical state of being,” a personal sonic response or echo to the images and feelings they’ve evoked in me. I recall already considering such a project in the autumn of 2003, so the idea has been gestating for a long time. The process has started and stalled many times, and the instrumentation has changed repeatedly along the way. Other, more clearly defined projects have often taken priority, and my thoughts on this work have remained in constant flux. Yet the idea always returned to me, resurfacing from time to time. A fitting opportunity to finally realize the piece arose when I was invited to contribute a work to this evening’s concert. The instrumentation changed once more, but the combination of flute and string quartet felt like a natural fit for the ideas that had been with me for so many years. This piece is dedicated, with my deepest respect, to the great visionary, thinker, and humanist David Lynch. < Back

Tulevaisuuden retki Children's opera: 2 soloists, reciter, ensemble Composed: 2010 Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Children's opera: soprano, tenor, reciter, ensemble: clarinet, horn, percussion, piano, violin, cello Duration: 1 hour Libretto Libretto by Emma Puikkonen Acts / scenes One act: Introduction and eight scenes. Scene 7 includes two alternative versions, with the audience choosing during the performance which one will be performed. Commission / dedications Commissioned by ArtSoppa Society and Turku 2011 European Capital of Culture First performance Kirsti Tuominen, soprano, Timo Turunen, tenor, chamber ensemble, cond. Pasi Helin, Linna Theatre, Turku Music Festival & European Capital of Culture 2011, Turku, Finland, August 6, 2011 Reflections Concert review, published on Turun Sanomat by Katariina Norontaus February 2, 2011 A Children’s Opera That Doesn’t Underestimate Its Audience An unusual world premiere took place on Tuesday morning at Pääskyvuori School. The children’s opera Tulevaisuuden retki ("Journey to the Future"), part of the European Capital of Culture programme, tells the story of Jaspriina Akuliina Harvahammas Möttönen, who is given a mission by the President: to travel into the future and bring back something exciting, something to brighten up everyday life—and a pickle jar opener. Produced by the Turku 3011 Children’s Opera team and ArtSoppa Society, the opera aims to introduce children to the world of modern opera both as audience members and creators. Workshops related to the opera were held last semester in twelve elementary schools. “We specifically wanted to include schools without any special emphasis or focus areas, and that are located outside the city centre,” says producer Krista Leivo . Six classes participated in composition workshops, while three classes contributed to the set design and libretto. The latter groups’ creative input is strongly reflected in the final production. A Libretto with Child's Logic An hour of modern atonal music might sound like a tough listen—even for most adults. But composer Markku Klami , who composed Tulevaisuuden retki , has found through teaching and workshops that children tend to approach music with more openness than adults. “That’s why I didn’t try to write music that sounded like children’s songs—I approached it from a completely different angle.” Director Tapio Väntsi is also pleased with how the children received the hour-long performance. “There was some fidgeting in the front row—that’s where the youngest kids were sitting. One teacher even said there haven’t been many performances that students have watched so still and focused.” Emma Puikkonen , who wrote the libretto based on texts by the children, noticed that the same things that made them laugh in class also worked in the audience. < Back

FUME Clarinet and orchestra Composed: 2008 Watch / listen Lauri Sallinen , clarinet, Avanti! Chamber Orchestra , cond. Jani Telaranta Live performance from Ung Nordisk Musik Festival, September 24, 2010 Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Clarinet and orchestra: 2(A.fl.).2(E.hn).2(B.cl).2/2.2.0.0./perc./Str. (minimum: 6.6.5.4.2., preferred: 8.6.6.4.3.) Duration: 23 minutes Movements I. ...bursting into... II. ...a serenade... III. ...to one out of reach, Commission / dedications Dedicated to Lauri Sallinen Accolades Selected to the Jury's list of recommended works in the 2nd International Uuno Klami Composition Competition 2009 First performance Lauri Sallinen, clarinet, Avanti! Orchestra, cond. Jani Telaranta, Ung Nordisk Musik: COLLISION! Festival, Concert hall of the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, Finland, September 24, 2010 Reflections Concert review, published on Hufvudstadsbladet by Mats Liljeroos September 26, 2010 Markku Klami’s FUME for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra stood out as a case of its own. The Turku-born composer (b. 1979) clearly possesses more than enough talent, and the piece was crafted with considerable professional skill. A name worth remembering. The same applies to clarinetist Lauri Sallinen , who handled the demanding solo part with effortless technique and a refined tone. Avanti! performed with the attentiveness and the kind of sonic brilliance one has come to associate with the ensemble in this type of repertoire. Composer's Notes FUME was my first concerto work and I wrote it especially for Lauri Sallinen . This marvellous musician (and also a very nice person) was of much help during the writing process of the work. I'm forever grateful for all his comments on my ideas and writings during the composing process. FUME was selected to the Jury's list of recommended works in the tremendously successful 2nd International Uuno Klami Composition Competition in 2009. The premiere was given by Lauri Sallinen and Avanti! Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Jani Telaranta at Ung Nordisk Musik Festival in 2010. FUME is dedicated to Lauri Sallinen. < Back

into the deep peace Mixed choir Composed: 2021 Watch / listen Voices of Earth Podcast Podcast produced by Mimmu Kyrönseppä, hosted by Julia Korkman The second episode of the series explores Markku Klami’s work into the deep peace . Julia Korkman hosts the discussion, joined by composer Finn Shields . A short excerpt from Klami’s piece is featured mid-episode, recorded live at the Voices of Earth concert by Audite Chamver Choir in Taulumäki Church, Jyväskylä, on February 11, 2023. Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Mixed choir Duration: 14 minutes Movements / sections I. The heat II. The night wind III. The daybreak Text John Muir (selections from My First Summer in the Sierra, adapted by the composer) Commission / dedications Commissioned by Audite Chamber Choir with funding from Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation First performance Audite Chamber Choir, cond. Jani Sivén, 30th Anniversary tour of Audite Chamber Choir, light design by Ainu Palmu, Old Academy Building, Turku, Finland, November 12, 2022 Reflections Concert review, published on Kuoromusiikin Kausikonsertit by Tove Djupsjöbacka April 11, 2023 into the deep peace took off as if from thin, quivering air and the landscape was calmly built both horizontally and vertically – I saw both mountains and the horizon and mighty trees in front of me. The upper notes conjured up the night sky and the beautiful, stable fifths created the impression of peace. Composer's Notes into the deep peace is based on selections of texts from John Muir's 1869 travel memoir My First Summer in the Sierra , published in 1911. into the deep peace was commissioned by Audite Chamber Choir for their 30th anniversary, and is dedicated to them and their conductor, Jani Sivén. The commissioner's wish was that the music would focus on a nature-related theme. This was a pleasant starting point for me, as nature in particular has for long played an ever-increasing role as a source of ideas for me. Almost immediately I decided to set the music to texts inspired by the diverse nature of the State of California. It didn't take me long to think of writings by John Muir. While reading his travel memoir My First Summer in the Sierra, a series of fond memories of my honeymoon trip to California and Nevada in October 2018 came to my mind. In the midst of ever-increasing rush and disruptions of the way of life in the Western culture, my wife and I managed to completely detach ourselves from the exhausting everyday life and enjoy each other's company in the vivid pulse of the big cities and intoxicating peace of the nature. The vastness and endlessness of the Pacific Ocean, the wilderness of the sun-burned deserts, the canyon scenery and the mountains of the Sierra Nevada impressed me forever. My perhaps clichéd experience of feeling very small affected me strongly in the Giant forest of the Sequoia National Park, near to the southern end of Sierra Nevada mountain range in California. This rather small area of around 1880 acres is the home to five of the world's ten largest trees. The famous inhabitants of the forest, the Giant sequoias, are among the oldest surviving trees on earth. While wandering around the Giant forest and standing at the foot of these trees, which reach up to the heights of a 14-story building, time disappeared. I felt as if these old giants were peacefully watching us in their sanctuary almost two kilometers above the sea level. The experience was tremendous, and absolutely sacred. These giants have survived many ordeals during their lives spanning over 3000 years, and they may well continue to live for another 1000 years, if we people allow them to do so. into the deep peace is my humble tribute to the nature, its endless diversity and beauty – a terrestrial eternity, as John Muir so aptly writes in his travel memoir. The title of the work is derived from a sentence in Muir's travel memoir, dated July 11, 1869: ”Sauntered up the meadow about sundown, out of sight of camp and sheep and all human mark, into the deep peace of the solemn old woods, everything glowing with Heaven’s unquenchable enthusiasm.” < Back

Website of Markku Klami, Finnish composer of concert and electronic music. Welcome Intro Watch & listen Out now on Alba Records! Emotive. Elegant. Unpredictable. From cathedral choirs to ambient electronics and vivid orchestral textures, Finnish composer Markku Klami’s music bridges tradition and innovation—heard worldwide from New York to Taipei. His music embraces texture, silence, and emotional intensity, often blending acoustic instruments with electronics. Rooted in classical training and shaped by curiosity, his voice as a composer is both personal and quietly bold. Bio & About Press & Media Watch & listen Play Video Play Video 03:07 Night signal Provided to YouTube by Playground Music Scandinavia AB Night signal · Polyteknikkojen Kuoro Kuunteletko Sinä ℗ Polyteknikkojen Kuoron musiikkikustannus Oy Released on: 2013-05-24 Artist: Polyteknikkojen Kuoro Composer: Markku Klami Music Publisher: Manus Auto-generated by YouTube. Play Video Play Video 12:38 Markku Klami: Clair sketches for clarinet, bandoneon and string quartet Markku Klami: Clair sketches for clarinet, bandoneon and string quartet Lauri Sallinen, clarinet Henrik Sandås, bandoneon Pasi Eerikäinen, violin Annemarie Åström, violin Jussi Tuhkanen, viola Markus Hohti, cello Recorded live on the 8th of May 2012 at the Camerata Hall, Sibelius Academy, Helsinki Music Centre, Finland Play Video Play Video 08:47 Markku Klami | Etude No. 6 ’Puro (Stream)’ Patrik Kleemola plays YouTube premiere of Markku Klami’s Etude No. 6 ’Puro (Stream)’, from Etudes for guitar (2021). Welcome to follow the YouTube premiere of Markku Klami’s Etudes for guitar on Mondays, beginning on September 27 and continuing every Monday until November 29, 2021. Every video contains a discussion with Markku Klami and Patrik Kleemola at the end of the video. Join in by subscribing to the channel and hit the bell icon to keep updated! Sheet music for Klami’s Etudes is available from Edition Wilhelm Hansen (part of Wise Music Classical): https://www.wisemusicclassical.com/work/61914/Etudes--Markku-Klami/ In ’Puro’, the focus is on a continuous stream of rapid four-note arpeggios, using the classic p-i-m-a right-hand fingering, occasionally expanded further to five-note arpeggios by the use of a hammering left-hand legato. For classical guitarists, the p-i-m-a fingering is one of the most common fingerings for an arpeggio, but is often tricky at first and requires intense practice before becoming perhaps the most natural of all arpeggio techniques. This etude is a great workout for this technique. Students can practice this etude at a tempo suitable for their current technical level. The goal is to develop the p-i-m-a arpeggio until it can be executed very quickly (while musical changes from one repeating bar to the next are still very gradual). While practising, one might imagine a small stream that keeps moving forward infinitely. Patrik Kleemola’s website: https://www.patrikkleemola.com Markku Klami’s website: https://www.markkuklami.com --------- Guitar: Brian Cohen (2003) Microphones: Stereo pair of DPA 4011a Cardioid microphones Audio interface: Prism Sound Atlas Videocameras: Canon EOS 200D www.facebook.com/KleemolaGuitar Play Video Play Video 07:04 Verweilen Provided to YouTube by CDBaby Verweilen · Markku Klami Verweilen ℗ 2020 Markku Klami Released on: 2020-12-18 Auto-generated by YouTube. Play Video Play Video 08:50 Markku Klami | Etude No. 10 ’Roihu (Blaze)’ Patrik Kleemola plays YouTube premiere of Markku Klami’s Etude No. 10 ’Roihu (Blaze)’ , the last etude from Etudes for guitar (2021). Welcome to follow the YouTube premiere of Markku Klami’s Etudes for guitar on Mondays, beginning on September 27 and continuing every Monday until November 29, 2021. Every video contains a discussion with Markku Klami and Patrik Kleemola at the end of the video. Join in by subscribing to the channel and hit the bell icon to keep updated! Sheet music for Klami’s Etudes is available from Edition Wilhelm Hansen (part of Wise Music Classical): https://www.wisemusicclassical.com/work/61914/Etudes--Markku-Klami/ Roihu begins with sonorous dreamlike sections only to develop into a furious and technically demanding finale to the Etudes. At times, the hectic pace is reduced in calmer passages, only to speed up again, leading to a crackling climax at the end of the piece. The use of very fast scales, tremolos, traditional arpeggios and one-finger arpeggios results in kaleidoscopic textures placing the highest technical demands on the guitarist. Patrik Kleemola’s website: https://www.patrikkleemola.com Markku Klami’s website: https://www.markkuklami.com Discover Klami's music

aura Alto flute and electronics Composed: 2009 Watch / listen Hanna Kinnunen , alto flute, Markku Klami , electronics Live recording from Time of Music Festival, July 11, 2009 Score / parts nkoda Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Alto flute and live electronics (2 or 4 channels) Duration: 7 minutes Commission / dedications Dedicated to Hanna Kinnunen First performance Hanna Kinnunen, alto flute, Markku Klami, electronics, Time of Music Festival, Viitasaari, Finland, July 11, 2009 Composer's Notes I composed aura for Hanna Kinnunen as a part of Composition comments project at Time of Music Festival in Viitasaari, Finland in 2009. My work comments on two other works for flute, bass flute and electronics: Poison Mushroom by Dai Fujikura and Atem-Lied by Toshio Hosokawa . aura was my first work for acoustic instruments enhanced further by the use of electronics. The work is dedicated to Hanna Kinnunen, who premiered the work at the Time of Music Festival in 2009. < Back

Clair II Clarinet and large ensemble Composed: 2021 Score / parts nkoda Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Clarinet and large ensemble: 1.1.1.1/1.0.0.0., Str. (1.1.1.1.1.) Duration: 16 minutes Commission / dedications Commissioned by the Seinäjoki City Orchestra. Dedicated to Lauri Sallinen First performance Lauri Sallinen, clarinet, the Seinäjoki City Orchestra, Seinäjoki hall, Seinäjoki, Finland, September 16, 2021 Reflections Interview: "New works for clarinet and guitar by Markku Klami", published on Rondo by Kimmo Korhonen September 1, 2021 “Music is a space where one can go to find calm,” says composer Markku Klami. “I experience composing as a form of escapism from today’s turbulent and hectic world. Over the past ten years, I’ve been particularly interested in how music affects our experience of time and space. My pieces often unfold slowly and have a meditative quality, which I see as a conscious commentary on modern life.” That’s how Markku Klami (b. 1979) describes his artistic starting point. This September, his new music will be featured in two different events. Clair II for clarinet and large ensemble will be premiered on September 16 in Seinäjoki, with Lauri Sallinen as the soloist alongside the Seinäjoki City Orchestra. Beginning September 27, Patrik Kleemola’s YouTube channel will present Klami’s 10-movement Etudes for guitar, released one piece per week. Klami has long-standing collaborations with both Sallinen and Kleemola. One of his career’s key works so far has been the clarinet concerto FUME written for Sallinen, which was included in the jury’s recommendation list at the Uuno Klami Composition Competition in 2009. Other milestones include his first orchestral work Flow for string orchestra (2004), the children’s opera Tulevaisuuden retki ( A Journey to the Future , 2010), and the puppet opera Croak (2016–18). His next large-scale project is a Requiem for violin and orchestra commissioned by Maria Puusaari . Clair II (2020–21), written for Lauri Sallinen, represents the third phase in a series of works built around shared material. “The first piece in the cycle was Clair Sketches (2012) for clarinet, bandoneon, and string quartet, which I wrote for Lauri’s debut concert at the Sibelius Academy. I had leftover material, which I later used in a larger version titled Clair for the same instrumentation. Then Lauri asked if it could be adapted for a slightly larger ensemble including winds. While that would have been possible, the material instead evolved into a new piece. I’d say this final version consists roughly 50/50 of new and previously existing material,” Klami explains. For Klami, finding the right title is an essential part of the creative process. “I can’t even begin sketching unless I have a title and a general vision in mind. The name Clair just came to me—and in some language, it means bright, glowing, or transparent.” Though Clair II is a single-movement piece lasting about fifteen minutes, it contains many contrasting sections. “The clarinet plays a more prominent role than the other instruments, but this is not a traditional concerto setting. At times, the clarinet blends into the ensemble,” says Klami. Collaboration with performers is a vital source of inspiration in Klami’s compositional work. Klami has worked with guitarist Patrik Kleemola for nearly two decades. Guitar is familiar terrain for Klami, as he studied the instrument for about four years during his composition studies, including lessons with Timo Korhonen and Ismo Eskelinen. Kleemola premiered four of the ten Etudes (2020–21) at the Sibelius Museum in Turku in November 2020. Now, the complete cycle will be released on Kleemola’s YouTube channel. Each performance will be accompanied by a conversation video between Klami and Kleemola, discussing both pedagogical and compositional aspects of the music and highlighting the collaborative process between composer and performer. While the premiere format might seem like a response to the pandemic, that wasn’t the case. “This approach suits the COVID era well, but we actually decided back in 2017 that the etudes would be published on YouTube,” Klami notes. Each etude focuses on a specific texture or technical aspect. “I wanted to address certain technical topics, but I also definitely intended for these to work as concert pieces. They can be performed as a full suite or individually.” “The etudes increase in difficulty as the cycle progresses. The first five or six pieces are playable by advanced music students, while the later ones pose challenges even for professionals. The final etude was specifically requested by Patrik for himself, so I was free to include anything as difficult as possible,” Klami explains. “Some etudes also explore unconventional playing techniques, helping performers gain access to the language of new music. Many extended techniques aren’t inherently difficult—they just need to be known.” In addition to the video series, the dissemination of the Etudes is supported by their publication by the esteemed Edition Wilhelm Hansen . Text: Kimmo Korhonen Original interview on Rondo , published by Kimmo Korhonen Composer's Notes Clair II has been in the making for quite some time. Back in 2012, Lauri Sallinen commissioned and premiered my work Clair sketches for clarinet, bandoneón and string quartet in his debut concert at The Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. During the composition process of Clair sketches I ended up having a bunch of material that didn't make it to the final piece. Five years later in 2017, some of that extra material, combined with the material from Clair sketches served as a basis for a new work, Clair , for the same ensemble, now with the addition of optional dancers. Clair was premiered in 2017 by Lauri Sallinen, Henrik Sandås and the Nordlyd String Quartet from Oslo, Norway at Kaivos Festival in Outokumpu, Finland. Some years later Lauri proposed an idea to arrange Clair for a bigger ensemble, namely the core ensemble of The Seinäjoki City Orchestra, composed of a wind quintet and a string quintet. This intriguing idea led to a commission from The Seinäjoki City Orchestra. What begun as an arrangement project turned out to be a new work, Clair II for clarinet and large ensemble. Clair II combines material from both Clair sketches and Clair , with completely new material added to the whole. Clair II was composed in late 2020 and the beginning of 2021 in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The original premiere date planned for January 2021 had to be rescheduled due to the pandemic regulations. Lauri Sallinen premiered the work with The Seinäjoki City Orchestra on September 16, 2021, at the Seinäjoki Hall in Seinäjoki, Finland. My warmest thanks to Lauri for his collaboration with this and many earlier works of mine and to The Seinäjoki City Orchestra for the commission. < Back

Clair sketches Clarinet, bandoneón and string quartet Composed: 2012 Watch / listen Lauri Sallinen, clarinet, Henrik Sandås, bandoneón, Pasi Eerikäinen, violin, Annemarie Åström, violin, Jussi Tuhkanen, viola and Markus Hohti, cello giving the world premiere of Clair sketches at Helsinki Music Centre's Camerata hall, May 2012 Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Clarinet, bandoneón and string quartet Duration: 12 minutes Commission / dedications Commissioned by Lauri Sallinen with support from Alfred Kordelin Foundation. Dedicated to Lauri Sallinen First performance Lauri Sallinen, clarinet, Henrik Sandås, bandoneón, Pasi Eerikäinen, violin, Annemarie Åström, violin, Jussi Tuhkanen, viola, Markus Hohti, cello, Camerata hall, Helsinki Music Centre, Helsinki, Finland, May 8, 2012 Composer's Notes This work has a little peculiar genesis. It all started when Lauri Sallinen asked me to write a new work for his debut concert at Helsinki Music Centre. I had already had very pleasant collaborations with him on my solo clarinet piece TWIRL (2008) and my clarinet concerto FUME (2008). Lauri's stunning premiere of FUME at the Ung Nordisk Musik Festival with Avanti! Orchestra in September 2010 has been one of the greatest moments of my composer career so far. Needless to say, I was immediately excited about the idea of writing a new chamber music work for his debut concert. Lauri suggested me to write a duo for clarinet and bandoneón, that thrilling relative of accordion. I had already heard Lauri and Henrik Sandås playing together as a duo for a couple of times, and these two gentlemen really do amazing job with their instruments. The duo of clarinet and bandoneón sparked an interest in me, but as late as in February of 2012 I asked Lauri for the opportunity to include a string quartet to the line-up. This was because for some reason I had developed an obsession that the work’s title had to be ”Clair". And that it should have strings in it. Luckily enough, this was ok for Lauri (as there already were plans to have a string quartet in some other works in his concert program), so the duo piece grew into a sextet. After that, things started to rupture in miraculous directions – and in this case, you can point that blaming finger at the composer. My original intention was to compose a ten-minute work. What we will hear tonight is around that duration, but the end result is something completely different from what I had originally thought. During the hectic and furious compositional process, the musical material somehow began to live its own life, and the piece began to swell over the curves in form and content. Somehow my own internal filters weren't in the best possible shape so the piece grew and grew further. It was hard to put a stop on it and the ideas about the whole work kept changing. Still, I want to follow my own instinct and not force myself to fight it, but the schedule was starting to get really tight. Something had to be finished and soon, so at a very late stage (probably in late April of 2012), I suggested to Lauri that I rework some of the materials into a separate entity, a sort of intro for the actual work that would be finished later. Clair sketches is not a prelude to a bigger work, but an entity in its own right, with some of the materials I had outlined during the spring. As a result, the work was renamed to Clair sketches , while the actual Clair was still waiting for its turn to take the final shape and form. In time, these two works will become sister works, which may be performed separately. Performing both works at the same concert would hardly make much sense, as they share such many similar characters and materials. Anyway, this is how Clair sketches came into this world. I would like to warmly thank Lauri for the commission and the Alfred Kordelin Foundation for their support towards this commission. < Back

Cinque miniature Guitar Composed: 2006 Watch / listen PERCHITARRASOLA – Finnish and Italian music for guitar Patrik Kleemola, guitar World premiere recording Pilfink Records (2012) Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Guitar Duration: 6 minutes Commission / dedications Dedicated to Patrik Kleemola First performance Patrik Kleemola, guitar, Castle of Carlo V, Monopoli, Italy, April 7, 2006 World premiere recording PERCHITARRASOLA - Finnish and Italian music for guitar - Patrik Kleemola, guitar (Pilfink Records, Finland, 2012) Reflections Album liner notes, published on Kleemola's PERCHITARRASOLA album, by Juha Torvinen Markku Klami's Cinque miniature presents itself as miniaturist musical genre paintings, as the name of the composition might suggest. The musical elements holding the miniatures together – pedal points, asymmetric rhythmics, extensive use of triplets, repetitive motifs – all these suggest that all these miniatures were painted in the same situation, as variations of the same atmosphere. The cyclical unity of the composition is intensified further by the fact that each miniature opens with tones that end the preceding miniature, and also by the fact that the first and last tone of the composition are the same. PERCHITARRASOLA album review, published on Classical Guitar Magazine by Paul Fowles April 2013 Fielding a mixed Finnish and Italian programme, the youthful and evidently able Patrik Kleemola is the dedicatee of all the items on offer. [--] With two exceptions, it all starts to sound more or less the same within a short time of hitting the 'play' button. The first oasis, which is the Cinque miniature by Markku Klami , remains a somewhat austere creation but achieves some degree of accessibility on the grounds of brevity. PERCHITARRASOLA album review, published on Turun Sanomat by Tomi Norha April 20, 2012 Of all the compositions, I find Markku Klami’s Cinque miniature the most effective — it is moderately idiomatic, versatile, and yet cohesive. Concert review, published on Turun Sanomat by Tomi Norha October 15, 2006 The most compelling part of Massimo Felici's concert was Cinque miniature by Turku-based composer Markku Klami — a stylish and cohesive work. Klami demonstrates a fine ability to evoke a wide range of characters and to make full use of the guitar’s distinctive qualities. Composer's Notes April 2024 Cinque miniature was composed for Patrik Kleemola between 2005 and 2006, alongside other projects. This short solo guitar piece received its premiere in April 2006 at the Castle of Charles V in Monopoli, Italy, performed by Kleemola. Since then, it has traveled the world in his repertoire, and to my great delight, many other guitarists have also taken the piece into their programs. The piece received its first recording in 2012 on Kleemola’s debut solo album PERCHITARRASOLA – Finnish and Italian music for guitar (Pilfink Records, 2012). Over the past two decades, Cinque miniature has become my most frequently performed work—played by professional guitarists and students alike across the globe. < Back

Fractured (Memoria II) Decacorde Composed: 2024 Watch / listen Passing Shadows Mari Mäntylä, decacorde World premiere recording Alba Records (2025) Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Decacorde Duration: 6 minutes Commission / dedications Commissioned by and dedicated to Mari Mäntylä First performance Mari Mäntylä, decacorde, Lentua hall, Kuhmo Arts Centre, Kuhmo, Finland, January 30, 2025 World premiere recording Passing Shadows - Mari Mäntylä, decacorde (Alba Records, Finland, 2025) Composer's Notes Fractured (Memoria II) is a reworked, or extended version of my Etude No. 2: Memoria (Remembrance) from Etudes for guitar cycle, written for Patrik Kleemola between 2020 and 2021. The idea for this extended version with new musical material, also making use of decacorde's extended bass register, was proposed to me by decacordist Mari Mäntylä in 2024. It didn't take me long to get interested in arranging my original Memoria etude for decacorde's 10 strings. I also shared Mari's feeling that the reworked version should throw in new, contrasting music to the original etude. While the original Memoria nods at the aesthtetic of Baroque music, its sound is now further enhanced with the new sonic possibilities offered by decacorde's bass strings. The new, contrasting material heard at the beginning of the piece and again between measures 42 and 64, is based on the series of arpeggios and rich use of harmonics, to be interpreted freely and with continuous rubato manner. < Back

trompetgeskal Brass quintet Composed: 2006 Score / parts Music Finland Instrumentation and duration Brass quintet Duration: 2 minutes Commission / dedications Commissioned by Finnish Student Health Service, Turku, for their 50th anniversary First performance Finnish Student Health Service Turku 50th anniversary gala, Brass quintet of Sohon Torwet, VPK House, Turku, Finland, February 3, 2006 < Back