Musicians - Aulis Sallinen

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	Musicians - Aulis Sallinen

Aulis Sallinen (1935–) is a Finnish contemporary classical music composer. He writes in a modern, though tonal and not experimental music style. He studied at the Sibelius Academy, where his teachers included Joonas Kokkonen. He has had works commissioned by the Kronos Quartet, and has also written 6 operas, 8 symphonies, a Violin Concerto and any number of chamber works.

Childhood and Studies

Sallinen was born in Salmi, in an area which was conquered by the USSR when he was nine. His first instruments were violin and piano. He would play both jazz and classical music. He was known to be extremely creative, and spent much time during his teenage years improvising. After a while, he began writing his ideas down on paper, and began to do serious composition. He attended the Sibelius Academy of Music, and studied with a number of prestigious teachers.

Early Adult Life

After graduating, Sallinen took a position as composition teacher at the Sibelius Academy, and continued composing. In his mid 20's, he was put on the board of directors of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He became chairman of the board of Finnish Composers ten years after. Though he was a known teacher and was on many boards of directors, his compositions were not particularly noted until he was made "Professor of Arts for Life" by the Finnish government, giving him money so he could focus more on composition.

Later life

After receiving that award, Sallinen devoted great amounts of time to his composing. He has revived standard forms and harmonies, but put them together in very contemporary ways. He has received a number of commissions from some very renowned groups and has composed seven symphonies, including a composition inspired by "The Hobbit" and containing Finnish folk tunes. He has written 6 operas, and is well-known as the composer of the title track of Kronos Quartet's album, "Winter was Hard".

Though Sallinen remains relatively obscure, he is a very accomplished composer.

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