Wessman, Harri

(*1949)

Harri Wessman (born 29 March 1949) studied musicology and languages at the Helsinki University and composing at the Sibelius-Academy under Joonas Kokkonen. Apart from composing he has also taught music theory and has been a music editor and a critic.

Wessman is interested in all aspects of music that may be expressive, without in any way ignoring the possibilities of melody. He himself describes his harmonic method as a kind of contrapuntally treated jazz harmony. Wessman is particularly preoccupied with the ability of music to express emotions, an interest which has led him to study the so-called doctrine of the affections and the musical rhetoric of the baroque era. His Eine kleine Figurenlehre for wind quartet and piano is a playful application of a set of baroque musical figures.

His output is dominated by chamber and vocal music as well as a number of concertos for various instruments such as the Serenade for Piano and String Orchestra and the Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra which has also been recorded twice. During recent years pedagogic music has become a more and more central area in his output with an emphasis on creating repertoire for budding musicians, from beginners to young professionals. Wessman’s aim is to eventually produce repertoire for all instruments at all grade levels of Finnish music institutes. He has even tailored some solo and chamber works for young musicians that he personally knows: e.g. Five Trombone Pieces for Minna Kajander (1992), Five Horn Pieces for Jenni Kuronen (1993), Five Piano Etudes for Tiina Karakorpi, Five Trumpet Pieces for Alevtina Parland and Five Double Bass Pieces for Amanda Thieme. Other chamber and solo pieces include Pan and the Nymph Pitys (1979) for flute and guitar, Three Caprices for Konstantin Weitz (1994) for solo violin and Capriccio for wind ensemble (1989).

Concertino for Trumpet and String Orchestra

Peilejä / Mirrors (MATERIAL FOR SALE) (1997)

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Duration: 17

Concertino No. 2 for Piano and Chamber Orchestra

Performance material available for sale! (1987)

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Duration: 10

Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra

(1987)

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Duration: 18

Eine kleine Figurenlehre

for wind quintet and piano

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Duration: 15

Serenade for Piano and String Orchestra

Performance material available for sale (1985)

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Duration: 5

Vesi väsyy lumen alle / Water Under Snow Is Weary

(1976)

for children's chorus and orchestra

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Duration: 4

Vesi väsyy lumen alle (Water under Snow Is Weary)
Tapiola Choir, cond. Erkki Pohjola

Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra
Nordic Chamber Orchestra, cond. Christian Lindberg, sol. Ole Edvard Antonsen
(BIS-CD 1548)

Piano Prelude No. 6
Jason Hu, piano

Anna Variations
Frida Backman-Clark, violin, Gustav Nyström, piano

Trio for Clarinet, Piano & Cello
Mikko Raasakka, clarinet, Antti Vahtola, piano, Olli Varonen, cello