Markku Klami | Composer
TWIRL
Clarinet
Composed:
2008
Watch / listen
Score / parts
Instrumentation and duration
Clarinet
Duration: 7 minutes
Commission / dedications
For Juulia and Christian
First performance
Original version: Marko Portin, clarinet, Time of Music Festival, Viitasaari, Finland, July 8, 2008
Final version: Lauri Sallinen, clarinet, Concert of Ears Open Society, Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, Finland, November 29, 2008
Reflections
Lucy Abrams-Husso's work commentary on TWIRL for her first doctoral recital at the Sibelius Academy
November, 2019
Markku Klami composed TWIRL in 2008 while still studying at the Sibelius Academy. The inspiration for TWIRL was primarily the clarinet itself, especially the dynamic and sonorous possibilities of the instrument. The work has a gentle start, through which Klami leads the listener to a quick and sparkling introduction to clarinet's timbral qualities.
The action-packed and lively parts quickly change into soft, mysterious episodes. TWIRL was written at a stage in Klami's studies where he felt his creativity was "blocked"; according to his own words, he felt "stuck" and unable to compose.
As a performer, I take this aspect into consideration when I play, trying to sound like I'm experimenting and improvising and developing the music as I play. The listener may be able to sense how Klami's creative process unfolds throughout this work as he plays with both form and instrumentation.