Nominated for the ISCM World New Music Days Romania, 2026

INSTRUMENTATION
3(III=picc.).3(III=ca.).3(III=bcl)3(III=cbsn). / 4.3.3.1. / 1 timp. / 2 perc: bass drum, vibraphone, 2 bongos (high & medium high), suspended cymbal (large), mark tree, 3 cow bells (high, medium & low), tubular bells, marimba, wood block (low), triangle, tambourine, glockenspiel, 2 tuned gongs^{(A3, G3)} / hp / pno (soloist) / 12.10.8.6.4
DURATION
ca. 22′
COMMISSIONER
The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra & YLE
PUBLISHER


PROGRAMME NOTE
I began writing Fantasy for Joonas Ahonen around the same time as I learned my wife and I were expecting our first child. Overjoyed by these news and excitement about the future, led to a boost in creativity I had never experienced before. The piece began to almost write itself and musical ideas came to me faster than ever. Spontaneous and fantastical in character, much of the work was written in a matter of weeks. Suddenly however, our son was born very prematurely, spending many difficult months at the Neonatal Intensive Care. During those months the music began to take a different shape, reflective of our exhaustion and anxiety. Yet, what underpins the whole work, is a sense of adventure and of course, hope. Fantasy is dedicated to my son and wife.

PERFORMANCES
29 OCTOBER 2025 (✦ World premiere)
Joonas Ahonen (piano) and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ilan Volkov
Musiikkitalo, Helsinki, Finland

VIDEO ▶︎

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REVIEWS