Furthering Our Finnish Friendships

This past January, Leading Tones Music Co-Founder Melanie Brooks traveled to eastern Finland with CW3 Jim Baxter (United States 34st Infantry Division Band) to lead a concert project with the Finnish Dragoon Band. This collaboration marked the 10-year reunion of Melanie's studies at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.

Over the past decade, the Leading Tones team has fostered many deep connections in this beautiful country. LTM composers Janne Ikonen, Marja Ikonen, Hanna-Mari Lehtonen, Jukka-Pekka Lehto, Sauli Saarinen, and Jukka Viistasaari all hail from Finland. The country consistently ranks at the top of the world education and global happiness scales, and their passion for music and the arts in unsurprisingly vibrant. Melanie's two concerts were held in the relatively rural communities of Lappeenranta and Savonlinna, and each boasted a full house of intensely appreciative audience members. 

While no Leading Tones Music publications were featured in this project, our composer friends Janne, Marja, and Hanna all made appearances to show their support and offer a warm welcome to Finnish culture (literally "warm," as stepping into the sauna was a regular occasion!). 

Melanie and the Leading Tones team are incredibly grateful for the fantastic music and friendships from Finland. We will share more news soon from their national wind band conference (Puhallinpäivät!)