Pienten Helsinki
*This article was created in commercial cooperation with UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra.
Article cover image by Jori Huhtala.
Little Papu's Orchestra & UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra take the stage together in Helsinki in September
What makes quality children's culture? Can you see a conductor in a concert aimed at children? What kind of instrument is a trombone? You'll find answers to all these questions at the concerts of Little Papu's Orchestra and UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra at Kulttuuritalo and Vuotalo!
Those who have been following Little Helsinki for a long time know that I'm a big fan of Little Papu's Orchestra. Little Papu with four members is wonderful, but what if 15 jazz musicians with their instruments, a conductor, and even Little Papu's illustrator also take the stage? The result must be amazing! And we'll find out soon when UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra and Little Papu's Orchestra perform together at Kulttuuritalo and Vuotalo in September.
But let's think for a moment about quality children's culture.
Children's culture is actually everywhere there are children. But children's culture is not a given, just something to entertain children. Quality children's culture requires investments and commitments. Although children laugh at bouncy castles, children's culture is much more than that. Quality children's culture brings new experiences and impressions within reach of children. Children's concerts performed by orchestras are important places to see and hear, for example, different instruments, and UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra embraced this challenge when it began developing a concert series for children together with Little Papu's Orchestra. That's why the upcoming concerts will feature new versions of familiar hits as jazz and big band versions, played on real instruments!
And that conductor. He is indeed an important part of concerts aimed at children and takes the stage at both Kulttuuritalo and Vuotalo concerts. The conductor of UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra is Mikko Hassinen and he has arranged all nine of Little Papu's Orchestra's hits that will be heard in the concerts.
UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra and Little Papu's Orchestra have also invited kindergartens to their own concerts to hear different instruments and quality music aimed at children. Without public support, these concerts would not be possible. With the support of the Arts Promotion Centre (Taike), the concerts are financed for a total of approximately 1700 children. But why is it important to bring kindergarten-age children to a concert?
UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra's acting executive director Henriika Steidel-Luoto explains the idea behind the autumn concert series and the importance of expanding the children's culture genre well.
"We at UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra feel that jazz, brass wind, and big band music are hardly visible at all in children's culture and music offerings, or in children's world in general.
In practice, this means that when a child starting music as a hobby and their family plans the choice of instrument, wind instruments are easily overlooked, and people turn to more familiar instruments such as piano, violin, and guitar. In the long run, this means that in our country there is oversupply of professionals for certain instruments and undersupply of experts in certain instruments. Instrument choices are often made before school age, so it was absolutely important for us to offer free concerts for kindergarten-age children as part of the kindergarten day.
We hope that after the concert, children will tell their parents with sparkling eyes that they want to start playing trumpet, saxophone, or trombone. As a publicly funded organization, we at UMO have an almost obligatory duty to make marginal music – that is, jazz and big band music – more visible to children through a project like this. We decided to combine the familiar and safe – that is, Little Papu's Orchestra – with something less well-known – UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra – as an easily accessible package. There's familiar but new music in store."
Little Papu's Orchestra and UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra will perform together at Kulttuuritalo on Monday 16.9.2024 and on Wednesday at Vuotalo 18.9.2024. The Kulttuuritalo concert will also feature Liisa Kallio, the illustrator who created Little Papu, who brings the characters to life by drawing to the beat of the music. Concert tickets cost €13 - €20. Read more and buy tickets!
