Esa Onttonen
born 1975, Jyväskylä, Finland
Guitarist, Composer
Biography
(the short version in 3rd person)
During the last few years Esa Onttonen has risen into the forefront of the Finnish jazz composers and arrangers. His main compositional output includes works for big band and Gourmet, a sextet led with saxophonist Mikko Innanen. His writing skills have been most notably utilized by Jukka Perko and UMO Jazz Orchestra but he has also written for various other big bands and orchestras such as Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Virtuosi di Kuhmo, Avanti! (with Badu Ndjai), Uusinta Chamber Ensemble and Kaartin Seitsikko. His most recent larger work is a 90-minute program of original compositions and arrangements for the Finnish organist Jukka Gustavson and big band.
As guitarist Onttonen has played and recorded with his own groups Gnomus and Gourmet and as sideman with Jukka Orma's Revolution Soul Band, Jenny Robson, Mirja Mäkelä, NoneAlike and many others. His versatile style ranges from the traditionalist "man and acoustic guitar" approach to a full electronic mayhem incorporating an array of effect pedals and various other sound-altering devices.
He has a Master of Music degree from Sibelius Academy (2001) where he also used to teach between 1999 and 2004. He has received several grants, especially from the Finnish Cultural Foundation which has given him three grants for composing in 2001, 2003 and 2004.
In addition to his musical activities he has a considerable experience in the field of computing, including web site implementations (the Fiasko Records website and a couple of smaller sites) and studies at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Helsinki.
Biography
(the blabbermouth version in 1st person)
The short biography above is meant for copying and pasting into various brochures and such, whereas the following longer version is less "official" and meant for those who are more interested in my doings (wishful thinking :-).
The Past
The Early Years (1975-1994): I started to play classical guitar at the age of nine, but switched to electric guitar (Japanese Squier Stratocaster, my main instrument even today) pretty soon, because it didn't feel right to play Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin riffs on something which can create only a limited amount of noise. Other early influences included The Beatles and some progressive music (Jukka Gustavson -era Wigwam, Frank Zappa) before jazz started to dominate my musical taste for some time onwards.
The Academic Years (1994-2001..2003): After having completed the mandatory nine-year schooling plus three more in high school, I moved from my hometown Jyväskylä to study at the Jazz Music Department of Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. After two and half years of guitar studies, first with Jarno Kukkonen and then with Raoul Björkenheim I switched my major to jazz composition, which I first studied with Kari Heinilä and later with Michael Gibbs, Timo Alakotila, Pekka Jalkanen and Juhani Nuorvala. I completed the studies (master's degree) in November 2001 by writing a suite called "About Five Pieces for Saxophone and Big Band".
In 2002-2003 I studied somewhat irregularly at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Helsinki, by taking some basic courses in Java programming, databases and software development. The studies are currently frozen because I have neither enough time nor interest. Maybe some other (life)time...
The Present
Guitarist: My guitar-playing has been utilized by such groups as the improvising trio Gnomus; Gourmet sextet, which I co-lead with a long-time colleague Mikko Innanen; vocalist Mirja Mäkelä's MiriaM & Band; Jenny Robson Band and jazz/pop group NoneAlike. With these bands and few others I have appeared on most of the Finnish jazz festivals and some international ones as well, such as Festival d'Amiens, Grenoble Jazz Festival and MusikTriennale Köln.
Composer/Arranger: I have composed (or arranged) for small jazz combos and ensembles, big bands, symphony and chamber orchestras, and theatre. If you're interested in my compositions, you might want to check out the list of my works. My composing activities have been supported by grants from the Finnish Cultural Foundation (in 2001, 2003 and 2004) and The Cultural and Library Committee of The Helsinki City Counsil (in 2000). My sincerest thanks to them.
Miscellaneous: I used to be a part-time teacher at the jazz music departement of Sibelius Academy since 1999 but I quit in 2004 to feel some freedom. During my sparetime I try to maintain a couple of websites: The Unofficial Charles Mingus Homepage, Michael Gibbs Discography and the website of Fiasko Records. An edition of my Charles Mingus discography was published in Gene Santoro's book "Myself When I Am Real" (Oxford University Press 2000), but I must say I still prefer the web implemantation over the printed one.
Selected recordings
as a co-leader with Gourmet:
- Gourmet: Six Acres of Broken Hearts (2004, Fiasko Records FRCD-19)
- Gourmet: Glamour & Decadence (2001, Fiasko Records FRCD-3)
as a co-leader with Gnomus:
- Gnomus: Diagnosis (2007, Fiasko Records FRCD-29)
- Gnomus: 28 août 2005 (2005, Fiasko Records TOTAL 4)
- Gnomus: II (2004, Fiasko Records FRCD-17)
- Gnomus (2000, Fiasko Records FRCD-1)
as a sideman:
- Hepa Halme: Prospektor (2008, Dogsoul Music/Presence PRECD 011)
- NoneAlike: More Than A Mirror (2003, JazzAri Productions ZZARI-031)
- Jenny Robson (2003, Jenny Robson JSR-01)
- MiriaM & Band: Secret Playground (2000, Secret Music SMCD-1)
as an arranger:
- Jukka Perko & Virtuosi di Kuhmo: Kaanaanmaa (2002, Blue Note/EMI Classics 7243 557422 2 3) - contains an arrangement of a Finnish hymn "Minä vaivainen, vain mato matkamies maan"