late night concert in an intimate setting

The Dutch-Finnish Trio Peltomaa Fraanje Perkola combines the sounds of the human voice, piano and viola da gamba with electronic effects and medieval harp. Curious about how they blend early music and improvisation into a very personal and recognisable sound, we asked them a few questions.

All three of you have very diverse backgrounds. How did you meet?

Mikko Perkola: “It was Aino who called me. And I just said yes. She was also looking for a piano player to fit the project and asked her brother, a jazz drummer, if he knew anyone in Finland who would play like Harmen Fraanje. Her brother responded: "Well why don´t you ask Harmen himself?", and the rest is history.

Aino Peltomaa: “Mikko and I were creating a similar concept as what we will bring during Klarafestival, but then for a concert in Finland. It was a very intimate setting, with candles, while the audience was lying down on yoga mats. I knew Harmen Fraanje’s other trio, Trio Fraanje Soniano Gouband, and I liked his playing. So I was very happy he wanted to join us for this concert. At first, it was supposed to be just this one concert, but it all felt so right –  it was as if we had been playing together for years – that we decided on forming a trio. When recording our first album, it was actually the second time we ever played together.”

You bring music from the Middle Ages to today, combining it with new compositions and electronics. How would you describe the music you play?

Aino: “It’s not only early music and jazz glued together, it’s something else. For me it is very meditative and colourful music, there is a feeling of space. Perhaps it’s something you can’t or don’t have to define. In a review, our music was described as ‘less is more’. I think when something is very little, it can become very big. 

Mikko: “You just have to listen, be in the moment, and breathe.” 

You also consciously leave room for improvisation in the programme. Why is this so important to you?

Aino: “In our first album ÆR, there are songs where the melodies are strictly written out in the manuscript. But then we develop them further. Via, for example, is an improvisation that started from Hildegard Von Bingen’s O Virtus Sapientie. Out of this one song, we created two separate tracks on the album, with Via as a kind of outro music.”

Mikko: “We are often composing in the moment. The improvisation offers a lot of freedom. In free jazz or even in medieval music, there are very strict rules in how to improvise or how to play. But in our trio, we don’t have any rules. We all come from different backgrounds and have favourite harmonies or scales, and as musicians we all put that piece of ourselves  into the music we make.”

Aino: “It’s very liberating, because early music is full of rules and theories of how things should be played or sung. I wanted to leave that behind. To me, early music is a starting point, it serves as a musical inspiration.”

Your debut album is titled ÆR. What does the title refer to? 

Aino: “It refers to the poem Aer enim volat from Hildegard von Bingen. We didn’t record that specific song for the album, but the piece ÆR is based on the text of that song. It refers to how the air sustains everything on earth. I chose this specific poem because it also relates to the present time, to the connection we are losing with nature. I also like the vivid imagery of the poem, praising the air and natural elements. It inspires me.”

What can listeners expect during the concert at Klarafestival?

Mikko: “We will play some pieces from the album ÆR, but also from our upcoming cd. But more important than what we will play, is how the listeners will feelI: I hope they will feel free to be who they are, and that they will experience the feeling of coming home during the concert.”

Aino: “We will play a late-night concert in an intimate setting, so it will be a peaceful and quiet moment. But also a surprising one. When you record an album, listeners have certain expectations. But because of the improvisation, not everything will sound like on the cd. It will sound familiar, but can turn out in a very different way.”

Why should the audience experience this concert?

Mikko: “In the past years, we didn’t have a lot of possibilities to enjoy live music together and really listen. So this is a chance to get back together and feel the music.”

Aino: “I do hope the audience arrives at the same very special place as where we are while making music. I hope it can help to make a connection with an internal feeling of peace, and with each other.”