Jonas Haltia

Trumpet player Jonas Haltia comes from Karlstad in Sweden, and started his musical career playing in a brass band. One of his instrument’s legendary soloists was a big inspiration:

− In my younger years I often listened to the French trumpet player Maurice André − he was the source of my trumpet-playing ideals. He had an incredible sound and played brilliantly with great attack.

− An enormous kick

On one occasion he had the opportunity to meet his great idol:

− The evening Denmark played in the final and won the European Championships in football, I was listening to a concert in Rotterdam, and André was the soloist. Me and some other musicians made the orchestra record the final, and we were allowed to borrow a room to watch it afterwards. He would come in regularly to catch as much as he could of the game.

Jonas has been engaged by the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra since 1990, and one of his first concerts with the orchestra has burned itself into his memory:

− It was the first time I played Mahler’s Third symphony, with Hans Vonk conducting - it must have been in the 1990-91 season. It was an enormous kick, so fantastically beautiful that it raised the hairs on the back of my neck.

Another conductor who has made a big impression is the Swede Herbert Blomstedt:

− Blomstedt's concerts are always great, and it’s an occasion when he comes to the orchestra. He has thought through everything and is completely without compromise − the result is usually excellent.

It’s more fun to play Romantic music

Much of Jonas’ favourite music is from the Romantic era, and Anton Bruckner, Richard Strauss, Gustav Mahler and Jean Sibelius are among his best-loved composers. The role of the trumpet in their music is not unimportant, either:

− Haydn was the first to write for modern trumpet. In early Romantic music the trumpet functions as a reinforcement of the percussion. In the Romantic era, music written for the instrument grew more melodic, and that makes the music more fun to play too.

His best advice for getting the most out of a concert is to prepare oneself by getting a good night’s sleep:

− It means you’ll be rested and won’t be in danger of falling asleep! It’s also a good idea to listen through the music in advance, find out about the work and the composer − it’s good to have some knowledge of the background to the music. However, all that’s not really necessary − you can just come and enjoy yourself!

When Jonas isn’t playing, he enjoys cycling, on mountain bikes or racing bikes.

− I take part in quite a few bike races throughout the year, for example Birken, Grenserittet and around Enebakk. In the winter I like to go cross country skiing, if possible.