Interview: Mr. Jarno Sarkula Sax/Clarinet player extraordinaire and songwriter
Greetings Jarno for taking time to answer this e-mail interview.
You are an amazing reed player! How did you get started as a musician?. When did you start playing and with what instrument? Were you self taught or `classically’ trained? What bands influenced you as you were learning to create your own musicality?
I had played some flute in my teenage years, but never really liked it very much. Especially the classical attitude towards the instrument was frustrating to follow and gave me lot of headaches. Finally I decided to learn electric bass mostly because everybody else was playing guitar. After cruising from one band to another I finally ended up playing bass with Höyry-kone . At this time I liked some Jethro Tull songs so much that I picked up the flute again and actually played it on couple of tracks on Höyry-kone's second album Huono Parturi.Back in 1997 I bought soprano sax and founded Alamaailman Vasarat the same day with Höyry-kone drummer Teemu Hänninen. I couldn't play the instrument at all, but of course it had plenty of similarities with flute so caught on quickly. Later I picked tenor sax and bass clarinet to expand the tonal vocabulary. You could say I'm mostly self taught, because I never went to any schools for sax playing. But I took some lessons for bass and flute and of course they had some impact on my playing. For composing and arranging I've read plenty theory from various sources, but mostly I rely on experience and ears.In the early days, when I was playing bass, I was influenced by some prog bands such as Rush and Marillion, and also some heavy metal such as Iron Maiden and Metallica. Later when I learned some chops, I had my "fusion-period", which luckily didn't last very long, but gave me a lifelong distaste to Chick Corea. Eventually I found myself enjoying mostly film scores and some pop music such as Depeche Mode. These days I listen to almost anything with interest, but oddly enough, not much world music or prog. Do you compose your songs through jamming or do you writing at home/studio? What instrument do you write on? Is composing songs a group effort?
In most cases the songs start from simple melodies and chord progressions which are then arranged by the band through jamming and trying out different music styles. I do arrange some stuff beforehand, especially for the last album, but usually I try to keep away from that, because it might actually limit the different possibilites. Alamaailman Vasarat is so full of excellent musicians that is more rewarding to just explore and let the song find its shape with everyone participating. The only thing I'm concerned with my own compositions are the melodies. They're the main reason for song's existence and therefore considered somewhat "holy". A lot of people in America and other countries are not familiar with your wonderful band. In a brief paragraph or so, please explain Alamaailman Vasarat to the uninformed.
Alamaailman Vasarat is an instrumental band playing fictional world music. Did you want to have this unique lineup of instrumentalist in the band, or did it just progress into having cellos, trombone, box organ, etc.?
From the day one, it was clear that we needed pump organ. My old friend Miikka from the "fusion-days" had one, so it was a problem quickly solved. Rest of the lineup was unclear at this point although we all agreed that it should be acoustic and without guitars. About a month later I was in a party with several old friends. Drunk as hell, I told Marko (the cellist from Höyry-kone) about this new band I had and quickly realised that cello is really something we need. I asked him to join immediately and he just answered "I was wondering when you'd ask, of course I'm in!". About a year later, after finishing our first demo, we realised that something was still missing from melody department and asked Erno Haukkala to join forces with trombone. Years later, when Marko had had bad hand injury, Tuukka came to replace him for a few gigs. He played so well that we asked him join us. Now we have two cellists, both sharing melodies and rhythm department. The band seems to be having a blast playing live. Do you prefer playing in front of an audience or in the studio? Why?
Vasarat is definitely at home on stage and songs really reach other dimensions when playing live. But studio work is very rewarding too and it is always fun to experiment with different techniques outside live environment. Both Miikka and I have our own studios and plenty of experience in this field, so it is a natural for us to develop our sound in the studio and not just playing live. The classic question. What would you listen to if you were stranded on a desert island (With a CD player and batteries), and you could have any ten albums, what would you choose and why?
It's hard to give a specific list but there should be plenty of Tom Waits albums and maybe some film scores from David Lean and Hitchcock movies. Maybe one Celine Dion album too, just to remind me what not to miss. What is your favorite book? Movie? Hobbies/interests outside music?
My favourite writer is Mika Waltari, a Finnish visionary who wrote a Sinuhe the Egyptian. I'm also a big movie fan, having a huge collection of dvd's from various genres. I don't really have any other hobbies, I just make sounds, music, dvd's, videos, various post-work, and watch movies when I have the time. What do you think of the music field today? Do you believe that progressive music is now an underground phenomenon?
I don't really follow prog genre that often so it is hard for me to say what status it might have in the music industry. Most likely it is UG stuff, but it really don't matter as long as music itself sounds good. What does music mean to you personally? What do you want to accomplish in music in the next 10 years?
Music is the most important way to express myself and almost everything I do has something to do with it, so cannot live without it. To be exact, I could live without listening music, but I could never stop making it. I've never planned ahead for as long as 10 years and probably never will, but it is certain that I will be making music in one way or another. What were you thinking and feeling, playing to 1800 progressive music fans at Nearfest this summer? How was your trip to the US? Did you do any sightseeing or other gigs in America? Would you like to return?
Nearfest was a very important gig for us and a very pleasant event altogether. It was overwhelming to perform for such an enthusiastic audience and certainly a gig we'll never forget. Not forgetting all the nice people who came to thank us afterwards for a good show. We didn't have any other gigs this time around, but we had some good time fooling around Manhattan afterwards. If suitable event comes along and we'll have proper funding, Alamaailman Vasarat will absolutely return to the States. Would you like to incorporate a vocalist into your music at some time in the future?
We've though about that a lot but so far we haven't done anything about it, because it is not really needed. This summer we've made some gigs with Finnish weird-rock legend Tuomari Nurmio, arranging his songs with Vasarat-style. Maybe we will record something in the future together, we'll see. What’s the next project for Alamaailman Vasarat?
Right now we're compiling some live material for possible dvd release. We're not planning for a 3rd album just yet, but I think we'll start composing new material early next year or maybe even earlier. Also some collaboration with Tuomari Nurmio could be possible, but nothing is certain at this time. You have an open forum. Do you have any words to the Prog fans out there? Or to young inspiring musicians?
To prog fans - thanks for supporting great music! Keep on doing that and spread the word! And to young musicians - always stay true to yourself and keep on exploring the things You like. Thank you so much for this interview, Jarno. Best Wishes and thank you for sharing you answers and thoughts.
Pleasure was all mine. Thank you!
