Circling the Source

In the summer of 1994, I became the music director of the UMO Jazz Orchestra in Helsinki, Finland. It was their first time with an international director and my first time being an international director. It was a dream job, and I had a terrific time and made many lasting friendships.

One day, my friend Kirmo Lintinen (a terrific pianist and brilliant composer) asked me if I wanted to go hear the Helsinki Symphony at Finlandia Hall.  They were playing Sibelius’ 3rd Symphony. Even before I came to Finland, I was a big Sibelius fan. So, I immediately said yes.

But I wasn’t prepared for just how moving a performance it would be.

The minute you walk into Finlandia Hall you sense the Nordic atmosphere and the weight of history and culture. It was designed by Alvar Aalto, one of Finland’s greatest architects. And the mostly blue-and-white interior colors conjure a uniquely Finnish, subarctic vibe.

Then, as I settled into my seat and the orchestra began to play, it felt different than any other performance of Sibelius I had experienced. From the very first note, the orchestra felt fully “dialed in.” And no wonder. They were Finns performing the music of a revered Finnish composer in the capital of Finland.

In short, the music was directly connected to its source.

After that, I experienced similar performances. Beethoven sounded amazing when played by the Berlin Philharmonic. And Mozart by the Vienna Philharmonic. Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein dazzled in the hands of the New York Philharmonic. And Shostakovich performed by the Moscow Philharmonic was nothing short of profound.

It’s true of all kinds of music. If you want to hear authentic Dixieland or Cajun, a trip to New Orleans might be in order. The best Country & Western lives in Nashville. Great Chicago blues can be found in, well, you can guess. And the best jazz? It might just be found at New York’s Village Vanguard, which has hosted the giants of this genre since it opened in 1935.

All these musical experiences have one thing in common: they are at “the source.” If you’ve ever thrown a stone into a pool of water you’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon. When the stone hits the water, it creates concentric circles which start out small and perfectly formed. But as they move further out, they grow larger and more indistinct. Once removed from the source, they’re not as pure.

Music is not the only thing that can be “better” at the source. Plays, dance, architecture, paintings, etc. all have qualities unique to their source. Even food. Feel like eating Indian? Go to an Indian restaurant. That is, if you can’t afford a ticket to India.

Of course, there are no rules. Just because something is further from the source, it doesn’t have to be worse. There are many fine movie adaptations of books. Some, like The Godfather, are arguably better than the originals. And as powerfully original as Chicago blues is, the real source is the Mississippi Delta — and before that, Africa. London blues is an even wider concentric circle. But who doesn’t love the Rolling Stones?

Creativity is the stone being thrown into the pool of artistic endeavor. I will always appreciate the concentric circles at the source, but I still welcome the larger more indistinct ones.

Rich Shemaria

May 15, 2026