Matei Gheorghiu, the Romanian-Finnish composer, has won the Uuno Klami Competition with his composition "From the Village of Nowhere" (piano concerto).

Held every five years, Uuno Klami Competition is one of the world's largest composition competitions in terms of participation. This year, over 200 compositions were submitted, of which five made it to the final.

The internationally-renowned jury, consisting of Kalevi Aho (chair), Magnus Lindberg, Mats Larsson Gothe, Lotta Wennäkoski, and Ernest Martínez Izquierdo, awarded the prizes as follows:

1st Prize: Matei Gheorghiu (Romania/Finland): From the Village of Nowhere (Piano Concerto)
2nd Prize: Dawid Grenda (Poland): you dream in a language i can’t understand
3rd Prize: Roberto Sansuini (Italy): FLOW (Flute Concerto)

The other finalists were Yves Balmer from France/Switzerland and Jonathan Brigg from the UK.

The award ceremony was held in Kotka, Finland on the 15th of November.

Photo by Petri Hurme / Vinkeä Design Oy. From left to right: Yves Balmer, Roberto Sansuini, Matei Gheorghiu, Dawid Grenda and Jonathan Brigg