✨Greetings from the wonderland of Tove ✨
💚 Eight years crop is now reaped and our album has been published! 💚
MOOMINVALLEY - Original Score Music
Samuli Kosminen • Pekka Kuusisto • Jarmo Saari
Suomenlinna became to me like a second home during this long and dear job. I joined Samuli in Pekka's big boots to continue composing and playing the music for the TV series from the second season in 2019. A huge investment was made in the music of Moominvalley from the beginning, and the musical language, musical vision, and virtuoso playing that Pekka and Samuli created for the series in the first season had created a strong foundation and identity for the music.
We have a prolific musical history with Samuli, but this job required unprecedented intensity. Brainstorming, composing, arranging, playing, recording, editing, encouraging and mixing seemed to be done simultaneously by him, while still staying on schedule!
Tove's fascinating characters, the series' insightful scripts, and the creative team really inspired and challenged us. Everything was learned and a lot of new things were put to use. With the routines we create to respect and listen to each other, almost anything is bound to happen in the future, when one's resources often start where the other's end.
There were hours of exciting and beloved material to choose from for this album. It felt natural to divide the 107-minute, 44-track album we created into four parts and themes: The Moomin Family, Adventures, Moominvalley and Special Moments.
The album features our trio working on dozens of exciting side instruments in our pursuit of unique sound aesthetics.
A big thank you also to the wonderful guest musicians: Jusu Berghäll, Johanna Iivanainen, Tuuli Lindeberg, Atte Kilpeläinen, Jouko Kyhälä, Saima Saari, Verneri Pohjola and Joonas Saartamo.
Composers: Samuli Kosminen, Pekka Kuusisto & Jarmo Saari
Additional recordings: Miikka Huttunen, Johanna Iivanainen, Jouko Kyhälä ja Jarmo Saari
Mastering: Jarno Alho
Photography: Tommi Kinnunen
Cover: Valtteri Heinonen
Thanks: Marika Makaroff💚, Nigel Davies & everyone at Gutsy, Moominvalley, Moomin, Sami Rikala and all at Sony Music Finland, Virpi Immonen, Mikael Hakkarainen, Cafe Silo, Boosey & Hawkes, Lottaliina Pokkinen and many more!
Artistic producer Marika Makaroff: “Moominvalley has been produced by exceptionally talented artists from all over the world. It was especially important to me that the music for the series was created in Finland by top artists. I am incredibly happy that this wonderful music, which runs through the entire series, is finally getting the attention it deserves with the album release.”
Samuli: “It has been a great privilege to be able to make music for the series with such exceptional talents and experts as Pekka and Jarmo. I couldn’t find an instrument in my studio that I couldn’t shove into their hands without warning, turn on the recording and ask them to play. The end result was always just as amazing. Composing and arranging this album together with Jarmo has been an incredible journey through these Moominvalley memories and beloved music.”
Pekka: “The music for the Moominvalley series was composed to be played with instruments you would imagine you would find in the moominhouse. A harmonica, a soft-sounding old upright piano, a violin and a mandolin were included from the beginning, as was Samuli’s imaginative arsenal of percussion instruments from pots to a suitcase. When composing for animation, the responsibility of music as an illuminator of the characters’ emotions is great. The work was intense, at times hard, and sleepless nights were inevitable, but the opportunity to play in the world created by Tove Jansson outweighed the challenges.”
