Photo: Takaaki Koshiba

Early morning. It’s snowing outside, but inside I’m enveloped in the warmth of the glowing fire and the soothing silence. My thoughts stray back to summer 2011 and Lieksa, where once again we were blessed with wonderful music and warm weather from start to finish of Brass Week.

I also remember luxuriating in the blissful peace I can easily find in Lieksa, even after the sometimes hectic days. Being able to listen to the sound of silence is a magnificent source of strength for us humans. So I can hardly wait to get back at Lieksa and its spell-binding brass atmosphere, and to be inspired once more by the surrounding scenery.

There will, of course, be lots of sounds as well this summer! The 4th International Raimo Sarmas Competition, this year focusing on our theme instrument for the summer, the trumpet, will be jumping the festival gun on July 18 already and from then on, life will be all fresh and sometimes high-spirited go. Making sure of this will, among others, be the highly popular Mnozil Brass and a trumpet ensemble making its Lieksa debut, Trombomania from France.

I also extend a warm welcome to all our first-timers: Enrique Crespon (GER) on trombone, Manny Laureanon (USA) and Luis González Martin (SP) on trumpet,  – all highly-acclaimed world masters of their respective instruments.

Considering that a host of old Lieksa friends, such as Eric Aubier, Andrei Ikov and Miklos Nagy, and ensembles from Ameriikan Poijat via the Pohja Military Band to Töölö Brass will also be coming along to delight and spoil us with a shower of glorious brass, we can truly look forward to a tastier-than-ever brass menu in the last week of July. Alongside our visitors from abroad, we value our Finnish artists just as much. For they constitute the backbone of Lieksa Brass Week both now and in the future.

Looking down the list of participants, I am pleased to note the numerous nationalities represented by our Brass Week artists and the contestants in the forthcoming Trumpet Competition, admirably bringing out the distinctive features of their respective cultures. This is a model example of how all cultures meet and merge in the capital of Finnish brass music – Lieksa.

Welcome to Lieksa Brass Week!

Jouko Harjanne

Artistic Director