Pessi Levanto FINLAND
HARPA nominated 2021 for his score for Marie Grahtø Sørensen ’Psychosia’
Pessi Levanto´s score in the film ’Psychosia’ is a masterful example of how not to overwrite. Everything irrelevant is cut out and every cue is on the spot. The music pays a clear homage to contemporary classical composers rather than to the more traditional film music composers. Pessi also cleverly uses material derived from Schubert´s Der Leiermann.
More than a regular film score the music almost acts a role of its own in the film as one of the characters. It haunts you when you least expect it and stays in the shadows when you would like it to help you the most. It keeps you on your toes and doesn’t relieve the tension for a second. The music has a totally unique sound to it organically hand crafted by Pessi with his own recordings of harp, piano, vocals and violin twisted to his taste, making the score a thrilling masterpiece.
- Finnish jury: Juri Seppä
Pessi Levanto´s score in the film ’Psychosia’ is a masterful example of how not to overwrite. Everything irrelevant is cut out and every cue is on the spot. The music pays a clear homage to contemporary classical composers rather than to the more traditional film music composers. Pessi also cleverly uses material derived from Schubert´s Der Leiermann.
More than a regular film score the music almost acts a role of its own in the film as one of the characters. It haunts you when you least expect it and stays in the shadows when you would like it to help you the most. It keeps you on your toes and doesn’t relieve the tension for a second. The music has a totally unique sound to it organically hand crafted by Pessi with his own recordings of harp, piano, vocals and violin twisted to his taste, making the score a thrilling masterpiece.
- Finnish jury: Juri Seppä
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Pessi Levanto (b. 1973) is one of the most prominent film composers in Finland. His wide knowledge of both classical and jazz/rock genres gives him a versatile and personal way of writing. His style is often light and delicate, colourfully orchestrated and carefully crafted with old-school craftsmanship utilizing modern techniques.
Pessi has scored fifteen full-length feature films, around thirty short films and documentaries plus miscellaneous spots and commercials. He has released seven records of his own and played in and done arrangements for dozens of others. His works range from symphony orchestras to big bands, from chamber ensembles to a cappella groups, from rock bands to brass septets. Recent work from Pessi includes; TV-Series "Pala Sydämestä"(A Piece of My Heart) (2021), directed by Hanna Maylett. Feature film “The Innocents” (2021), directed by Eskil Vogt. Short film "Reconstruction" (2021), directed by Pia Andell. Feature film "Se Mieletön Remppa" (2020), directed by Taneli Mustonen and TV- series ’Lasten Tasavalta’ (Republic of Children) (2020), directed by Rami Saarijärvi. Other work from Pessi includes feature films; “Psychosia” (2019), directed by Marie Grahtø, "Oma Maa" (Land of Hope) (2018), directed by Markku Pölönen, “Swingers” (2018), directed by Pamela Tola and short film “Helsinki Mansplaining Massacre” (2018), directed by Ilja Rautsi. Apart from the film world, Pessi is a sought-after arranger and has written dozens of orchestral arrangements for all main Finnish orchestras. A big project in this field was, for example, Classical Trancelations with the Helsinki Philharmonics, sold-out shows of orchestral versions of club music calssics. Apart from the orchestral world, Pessi has also written chart-topping pop songs for Japanese and Korean markets for such well-known artists as Arashi, Sexy Zone, TVXQ, and Afterschool. |