Osuma ensemble

Osuma in front of Tampere Hall.

Osuma Ensemble consist of five professional percussionists from city of Tampere. They all have varied backgrounds in classical, chamber and symphonic music, jazz, folk and ethno. Their performances have included many percussion classics, such as John Cage`s Third Construction, Steve Reich`s Six Marimbas and Edgar Varese`s Ionisation.

Jyri Kurri entered the Sibelius Academy in 1996 to study percussion with Markku Hannola and Lassi Erkkilä. He also spent the 2000-01academic year at Toronto University. Kurri is now the principal percussionist of Tampere Filharmonia and teaches at Pirkanmaa Polytechnic / Tampere Conservatory.

Harri Lehtinen studied percussion at the Tampere Conservatoire and University of Toronto,where he concentrated mainly on classical music and West African drum music. He gained his diploma in percussion in 1997. Lehtinen teaches percussion at Pirkanmaa Polytechnic / Tampere Conservatory

 

Toni Hietala (1971) qualified as a music teacher from the Tampere Conservatoire 1998. He studied percussion with Esko Vuorinen and Tiina Laukkanen and in 1999 with Russell Hartenberger, Beverley Johnston and John Rudolph in University of Toronto. Toni teaches percussion in Tampere, Valkeakoski and Ikaalinen and performs as an assistant in different symphony orchestras.

www.jannetuomi.com

www.myspace.com/tuomijanne

Tuomi has studied at the Conservatory of Tampere and at the Carl Nielsen Academy of Music in Odense, Denmark. After undertaking a study trip to New York City, Tuomi graduated from the Conservatory in 2000 with honours. In 2001 he travelled to Los Angeles to take private lessons. In 2006 Tuomi did his diploma recital as part of Tampere Biennale contemporary music festival, again with honours. During his professional career Tuomi has acted as a free jazz drummer, classical percussonist and everything in between. He has performed with guitarists Antti Kotikoski, Marzi Nyman and Raoul Björkenheim, saxophonists Daunik Lazro, Jone Takamäki and Jorma Tapio, pianists Iro Haarla and Seppo Kantonen, bass players Ulf Krokfors, Sampo Lassila and Claude Tchamitchian and numerous others. In recent times Tuomi has taken part in productions by the Balanescu Quartet and John Zorn’s ’Finnish Cobra’ . Apart from recording and performing various styles of music with a burning passion, Tuomi teaches percussion both privately and at the Palmgren Conservatory in Pori. He is also experienced as a theater musician. His first critically acclaimed solo-cd 'Approaching' (www.ektrorecords.com) was released in 2004. Second solo-cd will be out in 2007 (www.kevytnostalgia.org).

photo©Maarit Kytöharju . . . . . text©Petri Silas

Mikael Heikkilä (b. 1977) studied at Pirkanmaa Polytechnic/Tampere Conservatoroire with Harri Lehtinen and Jyri Kurri and at University of Toronto with Russell Hartenberger, Beverley Johnston and John Rudolph. In Toronto Mikael also studied indian tabla drum with ethnomusicologist James Kippen and ghanian Ewe drumming and dancing with master drummer Kwasi Dunyo. In addition to classical percussion instruments Mikael also plays a vast collection of ethnic drums such as djembe and frame drums. He performs regularly with symphony orchestras and various groups eg. early music ensemble Fioretto, Osuma Ensemble and world music band Aalto. Mikael´s recent projects have also included solo performances in Savonlinna Dome church and in Messukylä medieval church. Mikael teaches percussion and djembe drumming in Tampere, Riihimäki and Jalasjärvi.