Tapio Tuomela

Composer

Tapio Tuomela

Tapio Tuomela started his musical career as a pianist and conductor in the 1980’s, having finished both master programs at the Sibelius-Academy; he also studied two terms as an exchange student in the Soviet Union. He started his composition studies at the Sibelius-Academy in 1985 and continued them at the Eastman School in the USA (Master in composition, 1990). He accomplished his studies 20 years later at University of Arts Helsinki (Doctor in composition, 2014) where he has taught between 2005-2018 part-time and currently as lecturer of orchestration and composition.

Working as opera coach and conductor had a profound impact in Tuomela’s focus as a composer. He started in 1990-91 as lecturer at the Sibelius Academy and assistant conductor at Savonlinna Opera Festival and in most contemporary opera productions of the Finnish National Opera between 1990-1996. His music has been performed in festivals like World Music Days, Nordic Music Days, Gulbenkian (Lisbon), Présences (Paris), Moscow Forum, Sibelius & Beyond (London), and Scandinavia Today (N.Y.). In addition to organizations in Finland, he has got commissions from ensembles in Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Scandinavia, and Russia. He has led composer workshops in most of these countries.

Tuomela’s own music is often inspired by Nordic nature or cultural heritage, including the Sámi culture of the Northern Lapland. Tuomela has written also three symphonies, two concertos, a lot of choir music and other vocal music for various ensembles.

His Kalevala-inspired Mothers and Daughters was commissioned by the Finnish National Opera and the Finnish candidate for Nordic Prize, while chamber opera -melodrama Antti Puuhaara was composed to an old fairy tale. It was commissioned in 2008 by the french Ensemble Musicatreize and has been performed approx. 30 times, e.g. at Bastille Opera Auditorium and Musée d’Orsay. As for the more recent operas, Crossroads was first performed at Oulu City theatre in 2017 with ten sold-out performances, just like the latest, Fur Hat Opera at Rovaniemi Korundi and National Opera Almi hall in 2022 – and later broadcast also in the YLE program 1 “Opera Evening”.

In addition to several composition recitals at Helsinki and Turku (Finland), he has had portrait concerts in Belgium and France. His pieces have been elected by the Unesco Rostrum for Composers twice. His artistic prizes include the Composition Contests of the Sibelius-Academy Centennary and Finnish Indepence (70th and 75th Anniversaries; Piano Concerto, Finlandia of Our Time, and Symphony no 1).

Tuomela was Artistic Director of Time of Music Festival (2000-2008) and Hetta Music Days (2020-2025). In 2013, he was in charge of the organization of Nordic Music Days, producing also a tour of concerts in Estonia and Russia. He has worked several years part-time for the Society of Finnish Composers: both as executive manager (1992-1997) and chairman of board (2010-2014). He has been board member in several music organisations, incl. Finnish Music Copyright Office Teosto.

His other prizes include the Lion of the Finnish state, Ordre National du mérite / Officier en France, and the Kalevala Prize. He was Resident Composer of the Joensuu City Orchestra in 2008-2013, featured composer at Nordic Music Festival at St Petersburg in 2005, and Musiques Demésurées (Clermont-Ferrand, France) in 2006.

Music by Tuomela appears on ca 15 CDs, including the opera Mothers and Daughters (Koch & Schwann, Germany), Antti Puuhaara (Actes Sud, France), CD Portrait (Jasemusiikki, 1999), and several recordings at Alba, e.g. a comprehensive CD “Lullabies and Spells” with Helsinki Chamber Choir.

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