Alexi Tuomarila | |
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 Alexi Tuomarila, Finnish jazz pianist and composer | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 27 February 1974 Pori, Finland |
| Origin | Finland |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instrument | Piano |
| Labels | Edition Records, Svart Records, Igloo Records, Warner Music, Jazzaway Records |
| Website | www |
Alexi Tuomarila (born 27 February 1974) is a Finnish jazz pianist and composer.
Born in Pori, Finland, Alexi Tuomarila started studying classical piano at the age of six at the Espoo Music Academy, Finland. As a teenager he was enthusiastic about rock and grunge music before digging deeper into jazz through his father's record collection. In 1993 Tuomarila was accepted to Oulunkylä pop/jazz Conservatory in Helsinki, Finland. Next year, in 1994 he continued his studies under Diederik Wissels and Nathalie Loriers at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels and earned his Master of Music degree in 1999. Currently Tuomarila is working on his doctoral research at the University of Arts, Sibelius Academy, Helsinki.
During his studies he formed his Quartet with Nicolas Kummert, Christophe Devisscher, and Teun Verbruggen. In 1999 his quartet won the award for best band and Tuomarila won the prize for best soloist at the "21st Hoeilaart International Jazz Competition" Belgium. In 2001, he received the first prize at the "3rd International Jazz Soloist Competition" in Monaco, and he won the "10th International Tremplin Jazz Competition" in Avignon with his quartet.
The Alexi Tuomarila Quartet also won the first prize at the "5th International Granada Jazz Competition" in Spain 2005.
The quartet recorded and released three albums Voices of Pohjola for Igloo Records (Benelux) 2001, the Emma Award (Finnish Grammy) nominee 02 for Finlandia Records - Warner Music Group 2003, and Runo X for Edita Cambeya (Spain) 2007.
Alexi Tuomarila Quartet changed the name of the group into Drifter and welcomed Axel Gilain as a bass player/vocalist. Drifter recorded and released the critically acclaimed Flow album for Edition Records, UK in 2015.
In 2005 Tuomarila formed his renowned trio, with Norwegian bassist Mats Eilertsen and Finnish drummer Olavi Louhivuori. The trio has released four critically acclaimed albums: Constellation for Jazzaway Records (Norway, 2006), Seven Hills (2013), Kingdom (2017) and Sphere (2019) for distinguished British Edition Records.
The latest album Sphere earned Tuomarila the prestigious Emma award (Finnish Grammy) for "Jazz album of the year".
British BBC Music Magazine gave the album five stars and selected it as the "Jazz album of the month" (07/2019).
Tuomarila played a decade, from 2007 until 2017, with the Polish trumpet player Tomasz Stańko in different band combinations. Their first concert together was at the 750th anniversary of the city of Kraków. [1]
During 2009–2014 Tuomarila played with Tomasz Stanko Quintet (Jakob Bro, Anders Christensen, Olavi Louhivuori) toured around the world and also recorded the Dark Eyes for ECM Records, 2010, which reached number five in the Polish pop charts. [2]
Between 2015 and 2017 Tuomarila performed and toured with the Tomasz Stanko NY Quartet in Europe, China and Australia with Gerald Cleaver and Reuben Rogers
In 2023, the Tapiola Sinfonietta and the Alexi Tuomarila Trio, featuring Sami Rahola on electronics, premiered Tuomarila's concerto "Between Dark and Light" for symphony orchestra at the April Jazz Festival in Tapiolasali, Espoo Cultural Centre. The concerto was conducted by Jukka Iisakkila.
Tuomarila has also shared the stage with i.a. Eric Revis, Thomas Morgan (bassist), Reggie Washington, Joey Baron, Kenny Wheeler, Anders Jormin, Kush Abadey, Jim Black, Nelson Veras, Perico Sambeat, UMO Jazz Orchestra, Eero Koivistoinen, Peter Erskine, Bill Evans (saxophonist) Anders Bergcrantz, Rick Margitza, Maciej Obara.
Alexi Tuomarila
Alexi Tuomarila Trio (Mats Eilertsen, Olavi Louhivuori)
Alexi Tuomarila Quartet (Nicolas Kummert, Teun Verbruggen, Christophe Devisscher, Antti Lötjönen)
Drifter (Axel Gilain, Nicolas Kummert, Teun Verberuggen)
Alvarado/Koivistoinen/Tuomarila (Eero Koivistoinen, Martin Alvarado)
D.O.P.A. (Timo Kämäräinen, Tuomas Timonen)
Tomasz Stańko Quintet (Anders Christensen, Jakob Bro, Olavi Louhivuori)
Lithium (André Fernandes, Joonas Tuuri, Jonne Taavitsainen)
Eero Koivistoinen Quartet (Jussi Lehtonen, Jori Huhtala)
Manuel Dunkel Quartet (Teppo Mäkynen, Ville Huolman, Jaska Lukkarinen, Eero Seppä)
Lionel Beuvens MOTU (Kalevi Louhivuori, Brice Soniano, Franck Vaganee Natashia Kelly, Guilhem Verger, Ewout Pierreux)
André Fernandes Dream Keeper (Perico Sambeat, Demian Cabaud, Iago Fernandes)
Mats Eilertsen SkyDive Quintet (Tore Brunborg, Thomas T. Dahl, Olavi Louhivuori)
Nicolas Kummert Voices (Herve Samb, Jens Maurits Bouttery, Nicolas Thys)
Andre Sumelius Quartet (Ernesto Aurignac, Marko Lohikari)
Tolonen (Timo Kämäräinen, Teemu Viinikainen, Risto Toppola, Joonatan Rautio, Manuel Dunkel, Juho Kivivuori, Sampo Tiittanen, Ville Pynssi)
Tomasz Ludwik Stańko was a Polish trumpeter and composer associated with free jazz and the avant-garde.
Philip Catherine is a Belgian jazz guitarist.
Nicolas Kummert is a Belgian jazz singer and tenor saxophonist.
Eero Koivistoinen is a Finnish jazz musician and saxophone player, who started his career in the mid-1960s. Koivistoinen has worked as a musician, composer, arranger, conductor, producer and educator. He first heard jazz from the records his sailor brother had brought in from his travels. As a youngster Koivistoinen studied classical violin, saxophone and also composition at the Sibelius Academy, and later jazz at Berklee College of Music in Boston. His first line-up featured the drummer Edward Vesala and bassist Pekka Sarmanto. Koivistoinen was also a member of the seminal Finnish rock band Blues Section in the years 1967 and 1968. In 1968 he released his first solo album, a "literary record" called Valtakunta which featured songs composed to the texts of such poets as Pentti Saarikoski, Jarkko Laine, Tuomas Anhava and Hannu Mäkelä; interpreted by the vocalists Vesa-Matti Loiri, Eero Raittinen and Seija Simola. Eero Koivistoinen's later solo albums such as Wahoo (1972) enjoy a considerable international reputation. His hip hop-influenced 2006 album X-Ray features such people as the vocalists Charles Salter and Bina Nkwazi, DJ LBJ and the rap artist Redrama.
Bobo Stenson is a Swedish jazz pianist. The Bobo Stenson Trio, formed in collaboration with Anders Jormin (bass) and Jon Fält (drums), has been in existence for over five decades.
Juhani Aaltonen is a Finnish jazz saxophonist and flautist.
Jarmo Savolainen was a Finnish jazz pianist and composer. He was born in Iisalmi, Eastern Finland, and first studied classical piano. He later turned his attention to jazz and studied at Berklee College of Music.
Svart Records is a Finnish independent record company focused on heavy metal music, especially doom metal. It concentrates mostly on releasing LP reissues of albums previously unavailable on vinyl.
Dark Eyes is an album by the Tomasz Stańko Quintet recorded in April 2009 and released on ECM later that same year. The quintet features Stańko on trumpet, Jakob Bro on guitar, Alexi Tuomarila on piano, Anders Christensen on bass guitar, and Olavi Louhivuori on drums.
Håvard Aasan Stubø is a Norwegian jazz musician (guitar) and composer, son and musical successor of Jazz guitarist Thorgeir Stubø (1943–1986) and Grete Karin Aasan Stubø, and brother of Jazz singer Kjersti and Theater director Eirik Stubø.
Thomas Pohlitz Strønen is a Norwegian jazz drummer who has recorded more than 70 albums. He has worked with Iain Ballamy, Arve Henriksen, Mats Eilertsen, Ashley Slater, Eivind Aarset, Christian Fennesz, Nils Petter Molvaer, Bobo Stenson, John Taylor, Tore Brunborg, Morten Qvenild, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Sidsel Endresen, Bugge Wesseltoft, Tomasz Stanko, Koichi Makigami, Ernst Reijseger, Nils-Olav Johansen, and Stian Carstensen.
Mats Eilertsen is a Norwegian jazz musician and composer. He is known for recording with numerous bands, including the Maria Kannegaard Trio, Ola Kvernberg, Nils Økland, Eldbjørg Raknes, Anders Aarum Trio, Eirik Hegdal, Sverre Gjørvad, Nymark Collective, SKRUK, «Jazzmob», «Dingobats», Håkon Kornstad Trio, Food with Iain Ballamy, Jacob Young Band, Solveig Slettahjell's Slow Motion Orchestra, Håvard Wiik Trio, and «JazzCode».
Eirik Hegdal is a Norwegian Jazz musician (saxophone), composer, arranger and music teacher, known from the band Dingobats (1995-2005) and as leader of Trondheim Jazz Orchestra.
Thomas Tellevik Dahl is a Norwegian jazz musician (guitar), music educator and composer, known from a series recordings, among others within bands like Krøyt and Dingobats.
Edition Records is an independent record label that was founded in 2008 by pianist Dave Stapleton and photographer Tim Dickeson.
Olavi Louhivuori is a Finnish jazz drummer and composer, the leader of his own ensemble Oddarrang, and also performer within several other bands. He is married to the singer Emma Salokoski.
Maciej Obara is a Polish jazz musician, composer and bandleader.
Juho Verneri Pohjola is a Finnish jazz trumpeter and composer.
Kari Ikonen is a Finnish pianist, Moog player, and composer. He received the Yrjö-award from Jazz Finland in 2013, as the Finnish Jazz Musician of the Year.
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