Aleksi Ahoniemi (b. 1968) first appeared in the scene of Finnish jazz in the early 1990s and soon established himself as a specialist in funky and groovy jazz music. He studied at Oulunkylä Pop/Jazz Conservatory from 1993 to 1998 to become a saxophone teacher and completed his master’s degree at the Sibelius Academy Jazz Department in June 2006.

In the mid-1990s Ahoniemi was seen frequently on stage in the metropolitan area of Helsinki. He toured with the soul band Ma Baker’s Soul Factory, for one, and lead his own jazz-funk group, Gonzo, found in 1994. 1996 was a busy year for Gonzo: the group performed at Montreux Jazz Festival in the summer, made the audience move as the club band at Tampere Jazz Happening in the autumn and released a four-track EP, Medicine (SmoothArt 1996). Soon, however, Gonzo seemed to have run its course. Nevertheless, they got back together to celebrate their 10th anniversary by playing a string of live gigs and recording a radio tape which would also be released in album format.

In 2004 Ahoniemi started the quintet, Korma, whose musical style, compared to that of Gonzo, came closer to acoustic modes despite sharing the latter’s strong undercurrent of Afro-American rhythms. As an example of more urban soundscapes in Aaltonen’s discography is the studio project A2 that also involved a number of leading musicians of Finland’s jazz life.

Ahonen has worked as a sideman in Nuspirit Helsinki, for example. His sax can be heard both on the collective’s eponymous 2002 album and as a member of their live line-up. He has been part of Sami Saari’s band Sonics since 1997, and in addition to funk and jazz, Ahonen has been collaborating with several rock and pop music artists, such as The Rasmus, Bomfunk MC’s and Janita.

ed. Annamari Innanen 21.1.2014