Teemu Salminen (b. 1953) has specialised at UMO Jazz Orchestra in playing saxophone, exacting clarinet and flute parts, and improvised solos. He is known for his purposeful and focused ways of working and his ambitious strive towards higher-quality and more innovative musical expression. Salminen stresses the significance of education and individual thinking in musicians and composers’ work. This is why his compositions, arrangements, and interpretations of the works themselves are polished to their core; yet, his works never feel routine but have fluid and tangible elements in them. The UMO Jazz Orchestra also performs Salminen’s works. In addition to the instruments already mentioned, the versatile musician plays soprano, alto and baritone saxophones, bass clarinet, and piccolo, alto and bass flutes.

Salminen studied at the Sibelius Academy’s Department of Soloists with clarinet as his major and flute as his minor subject. After having studied only a couple of years at the Academy, he became part of UMO and the Jukka Linkola Octet with which he toured around Sweden, Denmark and US. After graduating he continued his studies in New York where he was taught by Steve Grossman and Bob Bergin, both of whom had played in Miles Davis’ band, among other line-ups. Salminen is one of the founders of the Tapiola Big Band and has been active in the UMO Jazz Orchestra from almost the very beginning.

Salminen, one of Finland’s top wind instrumentalists, has taken part in many projects outside UMO, but he has seldom had time to lead his own line-up. In 2002 his earlier quartets were followed by Teemu Salminen Septet, for which he invited six high-calibre Finnish musicians, all required to exhibit top professional skills and strong soloist input. The musicians included Tero Saarti (trumpet), Jukka Perko/Jouni Järvelä (saxophone), Antti Rissanen (trombone), Mikael Jakobsson/Seppo Kantonen (piano), Ville Huolman (bass), and Markus Ketola (drums). In 2003 the Finnish Jazz Federation coordinated the septet’s Finnish tour with the programme consisting solely of Salminen’s compositions and arrangements. The orchestra is still active.