Introduction

The Argentinian composer, pianist and conductor Guillermo Klein was the artistic partner of the UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra during 2020–2021 and he now returns to conduct the orchestra, bringing with him a commissioned work for UMO as the orchestra is nearing its 50th anniversary season. This concert is an overture to UMO’s anniversary season, celebrated from the summer of 2025 until the spring of 2026.

– To celebrate UMO and the orchestra’s 50th anniversary, I’m writing a concerto which brings every orchestra musician into the spotlight. In addition to the concerto, we’re performing music inspired by Argentine and Finnish tango. I’m really excited to be returning to Helsinki, says Klein.

The composer, pianist and conductor Guillermo Klein (b. 1969) was born in Buenos Aires in Argentina. He studied in the United States and is currently based in New York. Klein is a global jazz persona with a versatile musical background, ranging from classical education to rock and a degree in jazz, complemented by Latino influences. Klein has worked with several large orchestras, including hr-Bigband and the Metropole Orchestra. He also leads his own group, Los Guachos.

”Pianist-composer Guillemo Klein merges clockwork intricacy with guileless emotion in Los Guachos… On Cristal, they embrace Klein's kaleidoscopic take on the tangos he grew up with in Argentina – music charged with deep feeling and deceptive formality.”
Nate Chinen, WBGO

”Mr. Klein’s home country courses through everything he writes, but he resists letting his music be pinned to a single influence or nationality.”
Giovanni Russonello, The New York Times

UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra is the only professional orchestra in Finland specialised in jazz and new rhythm-oriented music. The big band of 16 musicians plays about 100 concerts every year in Finland and abroad. The orchestra plays a diverse range of modern music that is on the pulse of the times. The programme varies from jazz to soul and classical music, mixing old and new in surprising way, from children to senior citizens. www.umohelsinki.fi