MARKKU
VEIJONSUO - BEYOND TROMBONE
A solemn figure stands on the dimly-lit stage with a trombone in his hands. To
the concentrated man's right is a rack filled with flickering sound effect units,
on a stool by the rack lie two didgeridoos. This man is Markku Veijonsuo, the
lead trombonist of the UMO Jazz Orchestra. But tonight the brave brassman is in
the frying pan by himself. Tonight is the night when this Finn breaks the rules
and follows his muse — tonight he has a date with destiny.
Markku Veijonsuo spent his childhood and teens in the small town of Kangasala
near the city of Tampere, Finland. Born in 1961, he began playing the guitar in
local rock groups at the age of fourteen. This formative activity is echoed today
in the way in which the trombone wizard laces his innovative solo shows with an
exciting array of sound processing equipment.
Picking up the trombone when he was sixteen years old, Veijonsuo commenced his
studies at the Tampere Conservatory. Moving swiftly on to continue at the Sibelius
Academy in Helsinki, he gathered live experience through concerts in the ranks
of every noteworthy Finnish big band. The first chair of the trombone section
at the renowned UMO Jazz Orchestra has been Markku's since 1984, a good ten years
before he got his MA.
In many ways reminiscent of the situation in a classical orchestra, the safe surroundings
and camaraderie of a big band might seem like a wet dream for many a musician.
But Markku wants the best of both worlds: As a passionate and capable instrumentalist
he knows that he can never pacify his spirit by existing only in the Ellingtonian
world — even though with the UMO he has had the opportunity to work with
the likes of Kenny Wheeler, Dizzy Gillespie and Gil Evans.
— In a way the artistically broadminded concept of the UMO Jazz Orchestra
is a dream come true for me. Through this ensemble I have had an excellent opportunity
to delve into many different styles and eras of creative music. To my knowledge
the way in which the UMO has commissioned big band pieces from contemporary classical
composers is extremely rare. SUDDENLY, MR. HYDE TAKES OVER
The snowball which eventually grew into Veijonsuo's avantgarde avalanche was a
solo show in Helsinki at the very end of 1997. After careful preparation and mindmapping
the trombonist took to the stage and unleashed his novel concept to the world.
Since that night these everchanging concerts, which the procreator likes to call
"solo-operations", have been performed to critical acclaim on such respected
events as the Viitasaari Time Of Music Festival, the Tampere Jazz Happening and
the Avanti! Suvisoitto in Porvoo.
Already the first live shows were welcomed so positively that in 1998 Veijonsuo
decided to start planning his debut album. Performed live in the studio and captured
on tape by the trombonist's soundman Sepi Myllyrinne, 'Kara kara' was released
in 1999. Favourable reviews from such magazines as The Wire (UK) underlined the
fact that the first ever Finnish trombone solo album had tapped into a very creative
artery.
The Hi-Fi community seemed especially appreciative of the enveloping Dolby Surround
sound of 'Kara kara', but the most notable aspect of the work was Veijonsuo's
inimitable way of utilizing sound processing equipment to broaden and manipulate
his tonal palette. Never too much in the spotlight or used tastelessly, these
contraptions have been a cornerstone in Markku's glorious solo cathedral ever
since day one.
— A sound processing unit represents for me a way of transforming the trombone
into something weird, wonderful and alien. Therefore I like to make clear distinctions
in between the fx'd tunes and the acoustic pieces. When adding, say, a long delay
to the trombone it becomes a totally new surreal instrument. I have recently taken
this idea one step further by beginning to collaborate with electronic instrument
boffin Mika Rintala. With this mad scientist I have developed a Theremin-style
invention, which is presently connected to my horn.
As is clear, the equipment is there for a valid reason and therefore the idea
of "the one who dies with the most toys wins" has no resonance in the
philosophies of Markku Veijonsuo. By electronically embellishing the acoustic
properties of his brazen bazooka, the fearless Finnish trailblazer joins the ranks
of such innovative interfacers as Japan's Toshinori Kondo or USA's Ben Neill and
Jon Hassell. At the time of writing, these daring trumpeters form Veijonsuo's
only peer group. ANCIENT SONGLINES TO INSTANT COMPOSITION
Genres of music are quaint handles for the lazy listener. They make it easy to
state "I just love the French Impressionists" or "Oh, how I hate
jazz". Markku Veijonsuo chooses to run endless rings around his audiences
with programmes that dart recklessly from humorous multiphonic ditties to dirge-like
passages to playful demonstrations of superior technical control and beyond.
Aside from the sounds Veijonsuo conjures up from the trombone or his sci-fi effects,
he pays tribute to Mother Earth with the didgeridoo, the horn of the aboriginal
tribes of Australia. Marrying the futuristic with the ancient has a timeless quality
which appeals to the man. He says that for him the driving force is still the
search for pure musical emotion. In Veijonsuo's mind this childlike enthusiasm
is a strict antithesis to such values as trendiness or commercialism. By listening
to himself the radical trombonist has learned to trust his instincts, which veer
more towards the Dionysian than the Apollonian.
A major component in Markku's expression is improvisation. Often trapped by the
scores of the UMO Jazz Orchestra, the trombonist builds his own world on little
motifs or moods. Veijonsuo's rack includes a delay unit which enables him to form
loops of up to 198 seconds. After creating such a soundscape, the man can use
this sequence to e.g. realtime duetting with himself. These layered instant compositions
come often close to electro-acoustic contemporary pieces or ambient music.
— I have found myself in very rewarding situations when improvising with
people from outside of the jazz genre. Diving in at the deep end with classical
musicians has opened new vistas, as have the freeform experiments with modern
dance artists. These situations make it possible, even mandatory, to forget the
jazz and blues clichés so prevalent in the normal jam sessions.
— Another enjoyable arena is the ambient soundscaping I often use as a starting
point for solo improvisation. As an extension of this I like to put the audience
right in the middle of the action by using a quadraphonic soundsystem in my concerts.
The next logical step seems to be multivisual shows, because I believe that as
a whole music should be a somewhat mystical, otherworldly and even unexplained
phenomenon.
For the last calendar year Veijonsuo was chosen as a recipient of a state grant.
Taking full advantage of the situation he deepened his musical relationship with
accordionist Kimmo Pohjonen and toured Finland with a fierce improvising trio
consisting of himself, bassist Lasse Lindgren and drummer Mika Kallio. This 12-month
"working vacation" also gave Markku ample opportunity to update his
computer-based home studio and explore the possibilities of his new Composers'
Desktop Project -program developed at the University of Bath in the UK.
Other high points of 2000 included the project 'Trombone Meets Electricity' with
Kalev Tiits and Mika Rintala, an appearance in the movie 'Huomenna, taas' about
improvisation as a member of composer/trumpeter Otto Donner's daring group Free
For All, and three gigs in the ranks of the internationally lauded Jimi Tenor's
funky new group. Markku also made some moves in the political side of music by
joining the artist board in reedsman Jorma Tapio's Tse-Tse Club and co-founding
the association Sampo in cahoots with members of Nada and Free Okapi and such
musical free-thinkers as recent Georgie Award -winner, saxophonist Pepa Päivinen.
— One of the definite highlights and most challenging commissions of the
year was composing music for the concert 'UMO Juhlii 6', installment six in the
big band's 25th birthday celebrations. I tried to break the mould of the usual
jazz format by joining UMO's sound with ethnic instrumentalists, ambient and other
electronic pre-recorded music, visuals, and poetry. And of course, a quadrophonic
sound system.
Next up the man, who appeared alongside the legendary Edward Vesala (1945-99)
already in 1985 on the composer/drummer's album 'Kullervo' is planning to collaborate
with the most respected Vesala alumnus, guitarist/composer Raoul Björkenheim.
Novel developments for the solo show are also being considered. It is easy to
see that had the vanguardian Markku Veijonsuo been on location at the historically
stormy 1913 Paris premiere of Igor Stravinsky's 'Le Sacre du Printemps', he would
have sided with the progressive, not the regressive.
Veijonsuo, who was inspired on his path to free musical expression by the likes
of Albert Mangelsdorff, cites that the profound private lesson he took from Steve
Turre in New York City in 1992 was a turning point in his career. Discovering
anew the joy in music he first felt as a teenager while listening to the albums
of the Jimi Hendrix Experience and the Mahavishnu Orchestra, the brass master
began to approach the vibrating air that is sound in a totally novel manner.
Petri Silas (the Finnish Music Quarterly magazine 1/2001)
RECORD REVIEWS:
THE WIRE, July 1999
Karakara opens with a fogbound steamer in a fjord soundscape, the languid hallmark of jazz from Europe’s
far North. But things get altogether more lively as Finn Veijonsuo growls through
his trombone with a good-humoured ferocity worthy of the great Ellingtonian trumpeter
Bubber Miley. Elsewhere, Albert Mangelsdorff’s multiphonic technique is an
obvious point of reference. Veijonsuo is an articulate and imaginative musician,
whether simply soloing or orchestrating his blowing within varied live electronic
settings.
CADENCE, August 1999
If Finnish trombonist,
digeridoo player and electronic music maker Markku Veijonsuo isn’t already
involved in composing movie soundtracks, he should be. His impressive release
Karakara is lavished with many brilliant shades of color. It’s gripping,
too, as good drama should be. Veijonsuo,is a fine trombonist in the George Lewis
tradition, who, like Lewis, is very comfortable with electronics.He sometimes
sound like he’s blowing into something like a ring modulator or vocorder
device that supplies additional pitches to his delivery, but at other times the
multiphonics are apparently produced the old-fashioned way, by vibrations of his
very own larynx. In addition to playing a bunch of top-shelf unaccompanied solos,
Veijonsuo also utilizes live electronics as a bandmate. His delightfully buzzy
(sometimes processed) digeridoo makes a hell of a backdrop for some high energy
trombone blowing when he turns on the delay boxes. Here’s a forward-looking
musician who’s not afraid to use quite simple harmonies to put together several
spacey cinematic structures. Veijonsuo puts on quite a show. (Walter Horn)
ITA JOURNAL,
Volume 29, number 1, Winter 2001
In this album Markku
Veijonsuo takes avant-garde trombone music to a new level. All sound were produced
by Veijonsuo and performed live, exactly as in a concert situation. His multiphonics,
speaking and playing simultaneously, especially as demonstrated in Luukasen Päiväuni,
are skillfully interwoven around what themes there are. Since there are no backing
tapes or overdubs of any kind on the album, his performances are all the more
amazing, as all sounds had to be captured by the soundman in the Helsinki studios
where they were recorded.
Tekninen Egotrippi is a tour-de-force of avant-garde jazz playing, combined with
squeals, noises and multiphonics intermingled with every conceivable Watrous-like
cliché that has ever been recorded. The album’s name is derived from
Karakara, which is a study in sounds possible on the didgeridoo. The intricate
rhythms and sound derived in this work are a testament to the originality of Veijonsuo’s
imagination. In Message the didgeridoo is used as an almost ground bass accompaniment
to the electronic sounds produced by Veijonsuo. It is a true collage of strange
sounds that can be produced by one person. Alm is over seven minutes of uninterrupted
multiphonics that demonstrates a fantastic control of this element of performance,
but seems to go entirely too long for this writer.
This is an album that will have an appeal to anyone interested in all avant-garde
sounds possible on both the trombone and the didgeridoo, with electronically created
loops and controlled usage of realtime electronics. It is a true experiment in
sound, and a tribute to Veijonsuo’s imagination. (Larry Campbell, Louisiana
State University)
JAZZLIVE 124/99
Markku Veijonsuo hat
ein soloalbum im wahrsten Sinn des Wortes eingespielt. Er spielt wie in einer
Konzertsituation ohne Playback und verwendet nur an einigen Stellen zusätzlich
zur Posaune Liveelektronik und ein Dijeridoo, um sein Spiel klanglich anzureichern
und zu verfremden. Ein Album mit Soloposaune ist etwas besonders rares und adhoc
wird den meisten nur der Name Albert Mangelsdorff, dessen mehrstimmiges Spiel
der Finne aufnimmt und weiterentwickelt, einfallen. Das langjährige Mitglied
im UMO Jazz Orchester erweist sich wahrlich als ein Meister auf seinem Instrument.
Mit viel Imagination zeigt er die Möglichkeiten des modernen Posaunenspiels
auf. Das Album ist vom Beginn bis zum Ende spannend, abwechslungsreich und swingend.
Das Fehlen weiterer Instumente wird eigentlich nie als Manko empfunden. Dem finnischen
Posaunisten ist mit seinem Album Karakara ein bedeutendes Werk gelungen. (EW)
OM JAZZ 9/99
På stora scenen
under Tampere Jazz Happening, senhösten 1998, stod en ensam trombonist, Markku
Veijonsuo, intill en mängd elektronik. Han använde inte tekniken för
att maximera ljudeffekterna. Han ville komplettera sitt trombon- och didgeridoospel,
inte dränka det i diverse klanger. Då var det ett år sedan han
gav sin första solokonsert. För denna cd valde han inspelningar gjorda
i studion under ett halvår.
Veijonsuo har fötterna på jorden, allt han gör sker med jazzkänsla
och ofta starkt rytmiskt. Fem av numren är akustiska. Han kan använda
wawa-sordin på traditionellt sätt och spela med stark blueskänsla.
Tekninen egotrippi är ett härligt trombonsolo med humor och kraftig
rytm. Han spelar själv en svarande stämma som ger spänninng och
håller samman musiken. I titelnumret hörs han ensam på didgeridoo,
med små nyansskillnader och en levande rytm skapar han musik som lockar
till förnyat lyssnande.
Veijonsuo, född 1961, medlem i kända storbandet UMO sedan 1984, har
han givit ut sitt första soloalbum, delvis med nyansrikt använd elektronik.
(Sven Boija)
Markku Veijonsuo: Karakara
Silence 110 FIM (MNW)
On this album trombonist Markku Veijonsuo stretches the limitations of his instruments's
tonal possibilities. Karakara is a revisit to the places familiar to everyone
who have experienced his art in a concert situation. This is not so much "jazz"
as multifarious "farting" through an astounding amount of tonal spheres.
Chronologically, the very first growl comes from the Australian aborigines' didgeridoo
and the last from a bank of hi-tech sound processing equipment. This way the artist
takes us from age-old mythical worshipping places to modernistic cathedrals which
are painted with frescoes of sound. Glimpses of humour are also present as Veijonsuo
shouts and mumbles through his horn. Sounds, melodies and harmonies abound. Fortunately,
the pulsating Message also treats us to a driving beat.
Jukka Hauru, Helsingin Sanomat
(the leading Finnish morning newspaper)
TROMBONE!
Veijonsuo, Markku:
Karakara Trombonist Markku Veijonsuo is an unprejudiced musician who travels in between
musical genres. It makes no sense trying to categorize his art solely as jazz
or contemporary classical music. Veijonsuo is like an explorer who strives to
utilize each and every possible sound from his instrument as imaginatively and
richly as humanly possible. His playing has a true sense of greatness, and he
is constantly searching for his boundaries while operating in the uncharted landscapes
of self-expression. The man's pieces for solo trombone are insightfully embellished
by his use of electronics. It truly comes as no surprise that the national jazz
critics' poll of Jazzrytmit magazine chose Veijonsuo as the trombonist of 1998.
Whaletales; Luukasen päiväuni; Solidarity; Tekninen egotrippi; Karakara;
Message; Alm; Taivas, Zeniitti
Markku Veijonsuo (trombone, didgeridoo, live electronics)
1998. Silence cd
PH
CONCERT
REVIEWS:
FREE VOICES
AND SOUNDS PRESENTED
IN A DANGEROUS AND COLOURFUL MANNER
The "Vapaat Äänet" -tour at the Kanneltalo, Helsinki
Francois Corneloup
Trio and Markku Veijonsuo & Kimmo Pohjonen DuoAs I listened to the new creative
music conjured up by the groups this time in the fire on the "Vapaat Äänet"
-tour package, only one question arose. Why is music like this on offer so very
seldom?
Maybe societies who value "freedom" are in actual fact afraid of true
freedom and "independent" ideas. If market researches can't label a
project neatly under one specific heading, the whole venture is immediately chucked
into the category of "marginal".
This way of thinking has led to the fact that in music the most commonplace is
now the most predominant and also most accepted. We are terrorised by repeated
attacks of bland mediocrity. As a value, safety has irreversibly risen above quality.
Therefore the live-electronically laden meeting of Kimmo Pohjonen, a lauded accordionist
on the folklore circuit and Markku Veijonsuo, a tried and tested trombonist from
the fields of jazz, was not in any way a success — if we measure success
only by the amount of sold tickets.
It really is a miracle we still have such openminded musicians as Pohjonen and
Veijonsuo. Worth wondering is also a forum such as "Vapaat Äänet",
where the marketplace, the media and the audience can meet up with no preconceptions
of absolutely anything.
As a note to the people who are only interested in the marketability of a product
I must say that the imaginative moment of creativity which was laid before our
senses by Veijonsuo and Pohjonen was definitely longer than the stretch between
two paychecks. This quality of universal timelessness was further underlined the
very moment Veijonsuo grabbed his didgeridoo. The "big fart" of the
Australian aborigines passed through spheres and centuries.
Veijonsuo and Pohjonen widened their soundscapes to apocalyptic measures by consulting
their banks of electronics to build loop upon loop of varied sounds and pulsating
beats. But the rhythmic building blocks were still all the time very human: Grunts,
handclaps and various taps and raps on the instruments.
The twosome's impressive and colourful garland of sound had brutal mythical elements,
humour and even dancability. As their musical relationship further develops, the
duo is bound to venture into more impulsive areas of spontaneity. And through
following this path, their compositional components will become even more bountiful.
Jukka Hauru, Helsingin
Sanomat
(the leading Finnish morning newspaper)
WIDENING THE SCOPE OF THE TROMBONE
Trombonist Markku
Veijonsuo's "solo-operation"
at the Atheneum Hall in Helsinki
Markku Veijonsuo,
a mainstay in the UMO Jazz Orchestra, has decided to take a serious trip deep
into the sea of possibilities offered by his beloved trombone. On this journey
he has inevitably left the confines of jazz way behind. This concert was not really
an example of free improvisation, but it also wasn't a display of strictly composed
contemporary classical music.
By openmindedly throwing all the aforementioned elements in the same cauldron,
Veijonsuo managed to forge his solo into a very exciting display of varied performance
techniques. The drama-wise backbone presented by the man's various thematic nuances
and leitmotifs only helped to make the experience more mouthwatering.
Almost all the compositions were Veijonsuo's own.
Apart from the acoustic trombone (with and without the plunger), the show consisted
of a multitude of realtime electronics and the Australian aborigines' mythical
growling horn, the didgeridoo.
Veijonsuo's tonal palette was a thing of wonderment: At one point he produced
chords by blowing and singing through the trombone simultaneously. And when the
man multiplied these sounds with his radical usage of chorus and delay devices,
the soundspheres grew to truly huge proportions.
The audience was also treated to bit of a groove Veijonsuo-style. He looped a
sequence of the didgeridoo, layered his handclaps on top of the horn and then
grabbed the trombone to solo on top of the whole instant composition.
Very interesting and at many times magnificent. During some moments the spirit
of Albert Mangelsdorff seemed to hover above the audience. This original pioneer
of polyphonic trombone also popped into mind as sometimes Veijonsuo seemed to
overlook nuances or maybe could have benefitted from a tad more compositional
approach.
If Veijonsuo takes these minor "complaints" to heart, his already great
concerts will bloom into even bigger works of art.
Jukka Hauru, Helsingin Sanomat
3rd Feb 1998
(the leading Finnish morning newspaper)
SOUNDI Kesäkuu 6/2000 7. Markku Veijonsuo: soolokonsertit pasuunalla - Vanhemmiten helposti juuttuu nuoruutensa mieltymyksiin, ja minunkin on ollut
vaikea löytää avantgardistisempaa musiikkia kuin 1960-luvun jazzissa
ja ns. vakavassa musiikissa kehitettiin. Kuitenkin viime aikoina olen pari kertaa
saanut Veijonsuon pasuunalla soittamista soolokonserteista. Niissä on ytyä.
Omalista
M.A.Numminen
