Mikko Heiniö

Mikko Heiniö (born on 18 May 1948) studied composition with Joonas Kokkonen in Finland and Witold Szalonek in West Berlin, gaining his composition diploma from the Sibelius Academy in 1977. He also studied musicology and in 1984 earned a doctorate in the subject from the University of Helsinki, where worked as an assistant 1977-1985. He was Professor of musicology at the University of Turku 1986-2005 and Chairman of the Society of Finnish Composers 1992-2010. He was also Deputy Chairman of the Finnish Composers' Copyright Society Teosto. Heiniö is composer-in-residence of the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra.

The main items in Heiniö’s oeuvre are his three operas, the nine piano concertos and orchestral works such as the song cycle Vuelo de alambre (1983), the symphonies Possible Worlds (1987) and Songs of the Night and Love (1997) and Wind Pictures for choir and orchestra (1991). Other orchestral works include Envelope (2002) for trumpet and orchestra, intended to be performed before and after the Haydn Trumpet Concerto in Eb, Sonata da chiesa (2005) scored for brass, celesta and percussion, Alla madre (2007) for violin and orchestra, Syyskesän laulu (Late Summer Song, 2009) for soloist and orchestra (or piano) and Event Horizon (2012) for wind orchestra.

He has also written a wealth of solo pieces and chamber works for a variety of instruments such as Framtidens skugga (The Shadow of the Future) for soprano and brass ensemble (1980), Piano Trio (1988), Piano Quintet (1993), Sextet (2000) for baritone and ensemble,  Treno della notte (2000) for clarinet, cello and piano, Café au lait (2006) for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano and Canzona (2006) for string trio.

Heiniö’s series of piano concertos explore the worlds of choral music, dance, opera and jazz with a disregard for artistic borders. They are hybrids with unconventional instrumentations as the composer feels that “every work should succeed in conjuring up something unique”. The fourth piano concerto Genom kvällen (Through the Evening) is also a choral work. The sixth and seventh piano concertos Hermes (1994) and Khora (2001) were composed as dance works in close partnership with the ERI Dance Theatre. Hermes is scored for piano, soprano and string orchestra, while Khora has five percussion players instead of an orchestra. Both concertos can also be performed as concert versions. Moon Concerto (Piano Concerto No. 7 for mezzo-soprano, piano and orchestra) was commissioned by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Nonno (Piano Concerto No. 9 for amplified piano and big band) by the UMO Jazz Orchestra.

Mikko Heiniö is also a composer of choral music, such as Three Folk Songs (1977), Landet som icke är (The Land that is Not, 1980) and Luceat (1992). His recent large-scale choral works Maria Suite and Ilta (The Evening) have both been recorded by the Key Ensemble.

Heiniö has composed three operas: the church opera Riddaren och draken (The Knight and the Dragon, 2000) was written for Turku Cathedral’s 700th anniversary celebrations and it has been recorded on the BIS label. His second opera Käärmeen hetki (The Hour of the Serpent) was commissioned by the Finnish National Opera and premiered in September 2006. His third opera Erik XIV is a commission from the City of Turku, and it tells about the Swedish King Eric XIV (1533-1577) and his wife, Karin Månsdotter.

Heiniö’s music could be described as sensual, rhythmic and easily accessible. Basic features of his style are its colourful, impressionistic sonority and energetic rhythms displaying the influence of Latin-American music, jazz and rock. In the 1980s, particularly, he went in for marked contrasts of style within one and the same work (as in Possible Worlds). Among his latest works is the Concerto for Organ and Orchestra (composed in 2012-13) in which the organ at times dances to the beat of an old Italian Saltarello, while at others it engages in sustained, intense dialogue with the orchestra creating an impressive, sublime atmosphere steeped in colour. Heiniö's 3rd symphony, Symphony Concertante for Percussion and Orchestra (2017) is a commission by the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra for a premiere in May 2018.

Heiniö also has a reputation as a music scholar, as the author of several books and nearly two hundred articles. He specialises in new Finnish music, a subject on which he has written works focusing on the history of ideas (such as his doctoral dissertation The Idea of Innovation and Tradition, 1984) and the history of composition. His book Aikamme musiikki (1995) is volume 4 of the history of Finnish music that won the Finlandia Prize for non-fiction in 1997. Sanat sävelistä (1997) is a treatise on his own composition, his views on aesthetics and cultural policy, and his book Karvalakki kansakunnan kaapin päällä (1999) deals with the public image of Finnish opera.